Workout Recap 1/6 - 1/12

Only in Nebraska.... this week started off with Wind Chill Warnings and schools being closed because the high was below zero and wind chills were around the -30 range.  Flash forward to today, Sunday, it's 50 degrees above zero out and gorgeous.  

Monday - 7 miles, pyramid style.  7.0, 7.5, 8.0, 8.1, 8.0, 7.5, 7.0.  It might have been -11 outside at the time, but inside I was drenched in sweat.

Tuesday - Body Pump Express (40 minutes) and Zumba........ yeah, I gave it a try and felt like a total freak.  I had a friend who wanted to give it a try, so I decided to help her out and help myself branch out of my comfort zone a bit.  The instructor was awesome, and class was pretty fun, but I've never felt so uncoordinated in my life.

Wednesday - 7 miles, pyramid again, this one I finished 20 seconds faster than Monday.  CXWORX (30 minutes)

Thursday - 6.2 miles 8:31 avg pace.  I came home after work and headed out the door as quickly as I could to get this run started in a little bit of day light.  It was about 27 degrees and pretty nice other than the wind.  I had to be pretty careful with ice and snow that was still lingering on the streets and sidewalks, so I kept it slow.  It felt great to get out and run on pavement again.  I came inside and finished off with T25 Ab intervals.

Friday - CXWORX (30 minutes) and Body Pump (60 minutes)  Love my Les Mills days!

Saturday - 9 miles at 8:03 avg on the treadmill.  I had to be up early and get the run in early before heading to work (BOO!) so I decided to be safe and stay inside.  Even though the temps were pretty decent, I was concerned about ice.

PS. My tank is from Target, and it is probably my favorite tank ever!

Sunday - NORMALLY my rest from running day, but how could I not get out for an easy run in this weather?!  5 miles, 8:20 avg.  Came home and did level 2 of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred to finish off the week!

The fear of striking out...

"Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game."  

I don't know who actually said that quote, I tend to just think of Chad Michael Murry and Hilary Duff in "A Cinderella Story"...

Anyway... that's my motto signing up for a marathon for the second time.  I think back so many times to August when my hip gave me so many fits and ultimately ended the 2013 marathon dream.  I learned so many valuable lessons from that attempt at training and the injury that resulted, it's almost hard to hate how things ended up.  The day of the race was unbearably hot and my mom had to leave town abruptly after we got there for packet pick up the day before.  I wouldn't have had my cheerleader or likely a very pleasant experience running 26.2 miles that day.  Everything happens for a reason right?

I am confident in my abilities and I'm confident I can successfully complete another training cycle.  My fear is public failure.  I hyped myself up last time and sought out support from friends and family.  "Oh hey look everyone, I'm running a MARATHON!"  Which turned into, "I hurt myself and can't do anything..."  I'm scared that despite my best efforts, my body will fail me yet again.

I'm approaching training a little differently this time.  I have a lot more time to work with than I did last fall.  I also have winter temps opposed to horrible heat and humidity.  I would rather run in 20 degree weather or on the treadmill than 80s and humidity.  I have a calendar breaking down my weeks.  With more time, I have more flexibility.  I don't have to push myself through long run after long run and if something nags at me just ignore it.  No, I have time to be flexible and take some time off if needed, or supplement with cross training.

I'm three weeks into my training plan and feeling good.  Anything worth doing will take time to accomplish...

Brookings Marathon, May 3, 2014, I'm coming for you.

Treadmill Training

I used to be a treadmill hater, but I’ve definitely changed my tune here of late.  When the high for the day is still below zero, outdoor running just isn’t possible.  I’m lucky to have a treadmill at home, because I wouldn’t leave the house to go fight for one at the Y.  With spring marathon training beginning, I definitely NEED Mr. Treadmill!

There are TONS of articles about treadmill training, the good, the bad, the hating, or the loving.  I think it’s a powerful training tool, if used correctly.  I’m not going to say it’s super fun and not insanely boring, but there are ways to make it fun, challenging, and worth your while.  

 

My favorite way to do speed work is on the treadmill.  There is no wind, no cars, nothing in your way, oh and you know EXACTLY what your split will be.   You can make your workout as structured or as unstructured as you want it to be.  Some people go by minutes, I personally shoot for mile repeats, 800s, or 400s.  It’s easier for me to break it down in my head that way for some reason.

Example of some of my treadmill workouts:

 

PYRAMID
Mile 1: 7.0
Mile 2: 7.5
Mile 3: 8.0
Mile 4: 8.1
Mile 5: 8.0
Mile 6: 7.5
Mile 7: 7.2  Total time 55:21
This can be used for any distance.  I set 7 total miles as a goal for this workout.

TEMPO w/ Recovery
Mile 1: 7.0 (warm up and recovery pace)
Mile @ 8.0
400 (.25) @ Recovery pace
Mile @ 8.1
400 @ Recovery pace
Mile @ 8.2
400 @ Recovery pace
Extra miles for distance and cool down, vary the speeds, but within recovery range.

LONG
These depend on the distance and how I’m feeling.  I always start with a warm up mile and alternate between quicker miles and recovery miles.  Anything to help pass the time.  My best advice is change it up, don’t run very long at one pace or you will mentally psych yourself out of staying on for the long run.  I try to find something good to watch on TV or DVD, but usually have music playing as well.  If your treadmill is located near a window, open the blinds so you can get the outdoor feel.

My setup... TV, DVD player, facing windows and my medals

Let’s talk incline.  I’m bad about using it.  It’s obviously pretty easy to constantly run on a flat surface with no wind or obstacles.  I throw in inclines on recovery paces but the treadmill inclines tend to really bug my calves.  There are lots of ways to make challenging hill workouts on the treadmill, I just haven’t quite gotten myself to that yet.

I will post more workouts as I come up with them... and work on incorporating that good ol incline as I progress through this portion of training.

Workout Recap 12/30 - 1/5

I had half of this week off of work to finish up holiday break.  Then back to reality... We are in this wicked Wind Chill Warning deal now.  Hello treadmill.

Monday - 1 mile (8:35 pace) Then I went shopping.  Hit the Y for some cross training, 60 minutes on the arc trainer.  I hate that the machine shows I'm always a second or two short.  I'm not, I swear.

Tuesday - 8 miles (64 minutes) to finish off 2013!  I finished the year with 1240.47 miles, which was almost double my 2012 yearly total.  I did T25 Ab Intervals after my run.

Wednesday - 8 miles (64:34) and Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred (Level 1)  Holy sweaty mess.  I LOVE Jillian's workouts, especially the quick 30 Day Shred levels. 

Thursday - 6 miles (48:46) Easy run, followed by Jillian again.  I stuck with the first level all week, and yes, it's the easiest by a long shot.  But it is intense every time.  I did some strength training over my lunch break and focused on quads and hamstrings.  I did the basic seated extensions and curls and threw in some wall sits for good measure.

Friday - Body Pump (60 minutes)  The lack of strength training this past week made this a little tough and made me a little sore the next day.

Saturday - 8 miles (64:29) I was tired and sore, and this was just hard.  End of story.

Sunday - REST DAY!

Food Day Friday

Just kidding.  This is really a food blog at all.  I don’t cook, I kind of suck at it.  But I have a few creations and recipes that other awesome people came up with that I wanted to share because they are AWESOME.

Jamie Eason’s LiveFit trainer and recipes on Bodybuilding.com is one of my favorite places to go for motivation and recipes.  I make her Chocolate Protein Bar recipe every single week.  It’s seriously a Sunday night ritual.  I can’t go without them.  They make a perfect dessert, and sometimes I sneak one with breakfast too.

This week I ventured out and made her Pumpkin ProteinBars.  WOW!  Very tasty!  I’m going to admit my stupidity for entertainment purposes, I bought whole cloves rather than the ground.  Biting into a whole clove is DISGUSTING.  Laugh away.  Lesson learned for next time… other than the occasional clove chunk in your mouth, they are really delicious.  I’ve seen variations on Pinterest where you can whip up a little Greek Yogurt icing combo to top them with.  Sounds good.  I didn’t.  Jamie throws some crushed walnuts into her version, I did not.  Maybe next time when I don’t have cloves to crunch around.

FYI, I didn’t even have a 9x13 pan when I started this.  This is how little I bake/cook.

 

I love me a good protein treat.  Another fave while I was off work for a few days was Stuft Mama’s No Bake Protein Cookie.  DELICIOUS!  It makes one big cookie just for me!  I’ve made these before, but I hadn’t in quite a while out of sheer laziness, oh and I was out of Designer Whey (SAD day)

I follow her recipe, using vanilla Designer Whey protein and I actually crunch up a few Cheerios instead of the rice cereal.  To be honest, Cheerios were the only thing I had and I didn’t want to go to the store.  I actually liked it better with the Cheerios.  I mixed up a little PB2 in a separate dish to mix in as opposed to regular peanut or nut butter.  I froze my cookie for a bit and then topped with some Cocoa Cookie Butter swirl from Trader Joe’s!  YUM!

Oh hey, speaking of TJs, I made a quick trip over my break and stocked up on a few favorites.  Unfortunately, I live two hours away from a store, so I get what I can when I can.

The roasted chicken patties are my favorite because they are easy.  All I have to do is heat it up.  Yes, please.  I like throwing them on a piece of Ezekiel bread, topping with ketchup and a side of sweet potato.

Just when you thought my creations couldn’t get any more ADVANCED…. Check this bad boy out:

Eggo Multi Grain waffles, PB2, banana, and sugar free syrup.  Simple and tasty!

There’s my food excitement for the week.  Don’t worry, I’ll stick to running.

Things I'm loving lately

My time off of work to do productive things... aka SHOP!

 
Under Armour shorts.  They are super light weight and breathable, and awesome for super sweaty treadmill runs.

WINE.  I've been off work for a week and a half, and I've found myself reeeeeally enjoying wine in the evenings.  I didn't drink much at all during 2013, I felt like I was constantly in training.  I rekindled my love of wine.  New Age is my favorite, and so is Papa Murphy's pizza!

Oh hi, BEST CANDY EVER!

I love the time I was able to spend with family over break.  And family that are friends aka my cousin Michele.

Workout Recap 12/23 - 12/29

Better late than never on last week.  We had gorgeous weather and I was able to rock out 35 miles, which was the most I'd ran in a week in quite a while.  Christmas was my rest day, and I ate PLENTY to uh refuel my muscles :)

Monday -6 treadmill miles then headed out to start and end Christmas shopping... last minute style.  That should also count as a workout.  Yuck.

Tuesday - Christmas Eve! 8 treadmill miles, plus weighted lunges (ouch) and shoulder workout.  And Ab intervals with Shaun T.  Don't worry, I ate back every single calorie burned within 5 minutes at my parent's house.

Wednesday - MERRY CHRISTMAS!  Rest day.  I planned on running some easy miles in my new Wave Rider 17s, but I felt extremely sore, tired, and well, lazy.  It was a nice afternoon and I did make it outside for a walk around the lake which is close to 2 miles.

Thursday -8.5 miles at 8:12 average pace.  HELLO perfect weather!! This morning was so gorgeous.  I just wanted to run forever!
I hit the gym in the afternoon for some weights, and walked the lake with my parents.

Friday - 6 miles at 8:17 avg.  Again, perfection.  Spent the gorgeous afternoon visiting some family in Iowa, and finished off the day with Body Pump (60 minutes) and it felt amazing.

Saturday - 7 miles at 8:34 avg again outside.  And oh so hard.  Maybe it was from pump the night before, or just the extra miles I wasn't used to running outside, but I really thought I was just going to fall over.  Some runs are like that I guess...

Sunday - 45 minutes elliptical, Body Pump (60 minutes) and CXWORX (30 minutes).  I was tired after this :)

This was an awesome last full week of 2013.  I am off work, so I have lots of extra time to devote to fitness, which makes me extremely happy.