Rainbow Challenge and Bad weeks

HeY!

So the previous week was a TOUGH one!  I was sick, dealing with overtraining syndrome, and starting to deal with it by eating.  I wasn't eating junk food, but still eating probably more than I needed (which no matter how healthy of food it is overeating is overeating).  


I found a PERFECT article in Runner's World to describe how I was feeling.  It's called Undereating (or something like that).  It's about how undereating is becoming larger among long distance and cross country runners because there are studies that show lower weight = faster time.  What runners forget to see is that yes, a lower weight will make you faster, but if you're underweight or not eating properly you will hurt yourself and your training.  This section right here jumped out at me with HUGE letters and totally describes how I was feeling.  I have been training and running for 8 years (if you include high school cross country).  Even though I have been told that only 1% of Americans will ever complete a marathon I had become a part of the endurance racing world and met many people like me that I was feeling "average."  I am a marathoner and I LOVE that feeling of knowing I am part of a small percentage of people (slightly crazy) that will ever run 26.2 miles.  Unfortunately, after hanging out with runners (which I still love doing) I didn't think I was that extraordinary or different and endurance athletes don't like being average.  It's why we push our bodies to the extreme and run, bike, or swim so far.  We love knowing that few will attempt what we do everyday.  When I started thinking I was "average" or normal I wanted to push myself harder and further.  I was training 2 times a day, 6-7days a week, each time for at least an hour (now I see why I was so tired).  

"there's a part of them that's threatened to be average."

It's okay though I'm feeling better and back on track.  I learned it's okay and completely normal to have bad days, even bad weeks.  Days or weeks when we are unmotivated and feeling a little sorry for ourselves.  Instead of staying in that funk I decided to kick myself off the couch and get over it.  This quote helped me A LOT, "Fight it. Fight it hard. Pick ur butt up, get uncomfortable and go workout. Just do it. You'll feel better."  


So this inspired me to start writing one inspirational or motivational quote on my mirror each week to get me moving.  So here's this week's: 

"No workout will undo a bad food choice"

I think it's perfect for keeping me on track.  I know deep down that I am what I eat, but sometimes that's hard to see when I'm looking at my peanut butter container.  Now looking at this every day will remind me that no matter what workout I do or how hard I push myself, if I don't make the right food choices I'll undo everything.  I'll post them each week, so you can use it too if you want!

Okay, one challenge for me this week is to eat what I've cooked or put together.  I'm trying to eat more clean and eating clean is all about cooking and baking all your own food.  This is going to be toughest with my protein bars.  I love protein bars because they're so easy to just grab and keep in my purse or backpack as a mid-morning or afternoon snack.  Well, I want to kick those along with other items, but after seeing this little blurb in Oxygen Magazine it won't be so difficult...

Okay, so here's my BIG challenge for the week.  It's really to help me get more variety in my veggie and fruit choices.  I am doing a "rainbow" challenge.  Each day I will eat a food from the color of the day.  So here's how the week is going to look:

MONDAY: Red

- I ate red cherry tomatoes

TUESDAY: Orange

-I packed orange peppers and carrots

WEDNESDAY: Yellow

- I have yellow peppers, tomatoes, and spaghetti squash

THURSDAY: Green

- I have celery, green pepper, and arugula salad

FRIDAY: Blue

- I bought blueberries

SATURDAY:

- I bought purple grapes and raisins

SUNDAY: RAINBOW

- I am going to eat (or try to) one of each color on this day!!

I'll let you know how it goes!  Now I will leave you with some YUMMY pictures of clean foods I cooked on Sunday...

oatmeal muffins

stuffed pork tenderloin

clean pesto chicken pizza

chicken muffins, hummus, green pepper, and pre-workout PB ball

Pre-workout PB ball

Tales of a Carb Junkie and Overtrainer

Hey!  This is going to be a little shorter posting, but I think it is very important information I recently came upon.  These past couple of weeks I was feeling lathargic and unmotivated.  I was having trouble even eating the necessary calories each day.  Then last week I got a nasty cold that had taken residence in both my head, nose, throat, and lungs.  I decided this weekend to figure out what was going on, so I asked my trainer to help me out.  When we met last night, after she looked at my nutrition, workouts, and cardio she said I most likely had "overtraining syndrome." 

Overtraining syndrome is a side effect of, well training too much and not resting enough.  Some basic symptoms are: lose in motivation, lose in appetite, and irritability (sound familiar??).  I was overdoing and sending my body into over drive and my body was finally fed up with it.  My body was like a toddler that no longer wants to play along, sitting in the corner, crossing their arms, and saying, "NO."  So after much discussion we changed my training schedule: Mon: Swim, Tues: Spin AM Strength PM, Wed: Run, Thurs: Swim AM Strength PM, Fri: REST, Sat: Spin & Strength, Sun: REST

Okay, that seemed easy enough. It actually took a lot of pressure off me because I no longer felt the need to be lifting and doing cardio everyday, except Sunday.  Then, we moved onto nutrition (a word that sometimes makes me cringe and makes me nervous).  I had started reverting back to eating the same things all the time (meat, veggies, protein shakes), so my trainer said I need to add more "color" back into my nutrition (which I was doing good for a while).  I need to have more veggie diversity in my diet and less protein drinks.  So my goal is to eventually take out all the unprocessed foods, like protein drinks and protein bars (Clif are okay if I'm in a pinch for time) and replace them with more "meals," like chicken, tuna steaks, vegetables, fruit, peanut butter, etc.  Another thing I needed to add back: CARBS!  Not bad carbs, like processed buns or fried food, but good ones, like Ezekiel bread or oatmeal. 

Carbs have always been a "dirty" word in my vocabulary (I'm sure a lot more people think this way too).  They've been given a bad name by the media and fitness industries.  They have become known as the brown item that gives you that spare tire around your waist.  When I started training for marathons, about four years ago, I fell in love with carbs.  They are what fueled me to start my runs and helped me heal after my marathons.  It was a main staple in my marathon life- I had become a carb and cardio junkie.  Then when I decided to take time off of marathons after Chicago this year I didn't need all those carbs.  I started trying to slowly cut down on them (outside of vegetables).  I always found it very difficult and mentally almost harder than completing a marathon!  Then, a few weeks ago I tried to cut out any carb, besides ones that came from veggies and fruit and a few I'd allow myself to have every week (BAD IDEA).  This did NOT help combined with my overtraining.  I started becoming worndown, irritable, and didn't even want to get out of bed because I was so tired.  After, talking with my trainer I realized that I am not one of those girls that is going to be able to have some ripped six-pack AND I'm TOTALLY okay with that.  I cannot physically or emotionally survive on a low carb diet (anything under 100grams per day and I'm shot).  It doesn't mean that I'm not just as healthy or healthier than those people (I wonder if they completed 4 marathons and 2 half marathons while still in college with 2 part-time jobs?), I just don't have the all elusive six-pack (I have more of a four pack- which I love just as much). 

The last thing I learned last night from my trainer that sums up all this is: KNOWLEDGE IS POWER.  The more we know the better off and stronger we become.  Previously, I had thought I only needed extra carbs from bread and oatmeal if I was training for a marathon and I only thought an overtraining injury could be physical, like a twisted ankle..but now I know better.

So what I am getting at is learn from my mistakes (because trust me before all this my trainer told me NOT to do these things, but I had to find them out on my own).

1. Take time OFF- watch the slippery slope
2. ADD color into your diet
3. Take out all the processed foods and protein drinks
4. Eat CARBS (good carbs)
5. Most importantly LOVE yourself- no matter what your body type, your body has done some awesome things

For more info about "overtraining syndrome": http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/overtraining.html
For more info about my trainer: http://kendallpersonalfitness.blogspot.com/

New Years Resolutioners..and more

Hey!

So I wasn't planning on writing this one because I'm not in the greatest mood and I didn't want that to rub off on anyone, but I decided NO I can't just decide to give up because I'm having a bad day.  Which I guess ties in with my first topic- New Year's Resolutioner's.  We're closing in on the end of the first month of 2012.  This is when I've noticed the largest amount of people drop their New Year's Resolutions because they haven't seen those 20lbs miraculously drop off.  I wish more people understood that by setting such high goals and expecting it to happen in less than a month is NOT possible.  Not that it is not attainable, but it should be set for maybe a 3-6 month goal.  This picture I found describes it perfectly..

So those still sticking to their goals, like me: 12 weeks is March 25..stick in there!!

Maybe this next topic is a coincidence, but I don't think it is.  I've noticed A LOT more people using books, phones, and even laptops while in the gym, on the bike, treadmill, or elliptical.  I understand that exercising can get boring, but I feel that bringing reading and/or gaming items distract from your workout and actually take away from it.  Think about it if you start focusing on that article or getting to the next level on Angry Birds, are you still paying attention to how hard you're pedaling those wheels??  So why not turn off the phone or shut that magazine and focus for 30 min and push it as hard as you can.  I guarantee you'll sweat more and work harder!

My final rant...all these damn quick fix pills, shakes, diets, etc.  I'm sorry, but they are getting to me.  I'm SO over hearing how one pill, shake, quick fix will change your life/body in 60, 80, 90 days!  Yes, they may change you in 60,80,90 days (whatever they claim), but what will they do to your heart, intestines, or stomach over the next 10 years??  Clean eating and regular exercise are the ONLY guarantees to "fix" you for the rest of your life..and guess what?? There are NO side effects (okay, maybe sore muscles, toned muscles, and healthier well being..) So PLEASE PLEASE ignore all those commercials, infomercials, and sales people that sound and look really great and claim they have the secret to your new body because guess what...they're getting PAID to sell you that idea!  Guess who else got paid to sell the idea to make a product look appealing..the Marlboro Man...he got lung cancer and died.

Okay, now that I'm done ranting about that I'll move to how my weekly goals have been going.  So this week I wanted to stick to my 5 rules for eating clean and to add more tabata into my workouts.  Well, this was my first failed week :(  I came down with a nasty cold on Wednesday!  I wasn't able to workout Thursday or Friday, Saturday was really tough to workout because I was still congested, and today I was still congested and tired and has NO appetite.  It's been tough mentally trying to push through not being able to workout, train, and not wanting to eat at all.  So, this week I'm going to try these goals again for this week- my 5 rules of clean eating and getting tabata into my workouts.  Hoping it goes better this week :)  Swimming and lifting tomorrow..YAY!! Who knew working out could make me so happy!

On a more positive note this week: I've started cooking!  Not just chicken and veggies or fish and veggies..like actual dishes!!  Thanks to eatcleandiet.com  (website based on Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet and recipe books).  People are able to post meal plans and clean recipes and thanks to those people, people like me can eat more than chicken and broccoli.  This website has given me recipes such as, Low Carb Protein Brownies, Crock Pot Oatmeal, Sweet Tuna Steak, and Spicy Mashed Sweet Potatoes..here are some pictures for your taste buds :)

Low Carb Protein Brownies

Spicy Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Crock Pot Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

If you would like any of these recipes..just let me know or if you have any good clean recipes PLEASE let me know!!  

So my assignment for myself this next week to follow my 5 rules, train for my tri, lift, and add in more tabata.  The workout parts will be easy because I love going to the gym.  It's the nutrition ones that are always the hardest, so to help me out I have planned out my meals for both Monday and Tuesday and separated, sitting in my fridge.  Below is a picture of only some of the tupperware I've used for my meals.  I know if I have my meals cooked and with me, I won't cheat or stray from my nutrition challenge for this week!

 

This isn't even half of the tupperware I've used!

Til next time and one step closer to a hardbody,

Mo

Balls to the Walls

Hey there!

So this week I'm covering quite a few topics, but they all still fall under the idea of New Year's Resolutions and making myself new and improved!

First off, this year I have decided I've really wanted to push past all my mental limits that I've put up for myself.  My first step towards this was signing up for my first Triathlon (technically haven't signed up, but starting to train).  I LOVE LOVE marathons.  I live, breathe, and do everything for marathons.  It is no longer a hobby, but rather my lifestyle.  I noticed this summer though becoming unmotivated and really having to push myself to go out and run.  After Chicago, I decided I needed to take a break and do something different.  So, I thought why not a tri?  Even better, why not the Omaha Women's Tri?  Then when my trainer told me I had to start training and swimming.  The scariest words to me, swimming.  I DO know how to swim, but I was taught by my grandma in her swimming pool in Texas.  She taught me the basics, so I didn't drown when I was swimming with my brothers and cousins.  I learned how to "froggy" swim and float on my back.  Apparently, neither of those will get you through a tri..not even a sprint tri.  My trainer told what I should be doing with my arms, breathing, and legs in a basic freestyle.  When I went to the gym Wednesday night all I could think about while I was lifting was getting in that pool and looking stupid.  After lifting I had a little talk myself, "you're the one that wanted to push yourself harder.  No one is going to make you get in the pool, no one is going to be upset if you went home right now, but you know you'll be pissed if you don't do this." So, I put on my brand new AWESOME swimsuit I got just for tri training.  When I got in the pool I decided to just do what my trainer said.  I moved my arms and legs and counted to three and took a breath, moved my arms, counted to three, breathe.  By the time I got to the other side of the pool I thought I was going to DIE!!  I immediately started freaking out:  I ran 4 marathons and can't get to the other side of the pool.  How am I going to do this tri?  Am I really that out of shape?  After my mini freak out I decided it was time to keep moving.  After about 30 minutes of swimming one length, taking a breather, and going back I decided I had done enough damage for one night.  Once I got out and showered I had decided I had officially been converted to the "tri side."  I LOVED swimming.  It was so challenging, but I loved that I had to focus SO much on what each part of my body was doing and my breath that I had completely blocked out the rest of the world.  I was entirely immersed into training.  I can't wait til I actually get my training schedule tomorrow from my trainer (expect to see another post SOON).

In keeping with pushing myself I decided to try another "workout" that I had never imagined I'd ever do or could do.  I tried Bikram Yoga yesterday.  For people that don't know what Bikram is, it's a style of yoga that is done in a small (and I mean SMALL) room with 20-30 other people that is heated anywhere from 90-110 degrees.  It's 90 minutes long, 26 poses, and each pose is done 2 times.  The first time it's done for longer (1-2min) for endurance and the next time it's done for shorter time (15-30 sec).  It is supposed to help with lung strength and expansion.  Along with detoxification with all the sweating.  I went in with no expectations other than to go outside my comfort zone.  At first, I wasn't too sure- you open with this weird breathing exercise of deep breath in (6 counts) and deep breath out (6 counts).  The further I got into the class and the more I sweated the more I found myself getting deeper into the stretches.  Somewhere between the deep breathing, pouring sweat, and the eagle pose I fell in love with Bikram.  Maybe it was a daze from working in the heat or if it was the mindset of Bikram (leave all judgements at the door, anyone can do this if they allow themselves to let go).  I think it was the mindset, but I CAN'T wait to go back!!

Me after teaching spin, lifting, running (30min), and Bikram...just a little sweaty.

Now that I've talked quite a bit about working out I'll switch to the nutrition side.  My nutrition challenge this past week was to drink at least 64oz of water (outside of what I use in workouts), cup of tea daily, eating clean, and tracking my food everyday.  I can proudly say I did it EVERYDAY!!  I have felt AMAZING (besides the sore muscles)...I feel so much more energized and happy.  It's hard because of all the cheats available, but I just have to keep telling myself why I'm doing this and that it's not going to be easy.  I am still allowing myself ONE cheat day a week.  My cheat day consists of NOT working out (so my body can truly rest and rebuild) and not worrying about what I eat.  Today, I got to enjoy my brother's grilling while watching the NFL games with my family.  This morning I also treated myself to some yummy protein pancakes..that are surprisingly clean.

Protein Pancakes:

1 scoop chocolate protein powder

1/2 banana mashed

2 egg whites

1 tbsp cinnamon

Mix all ingredients and cook on griddle, sprinkle with truvia and ENJOY!

I also cooked some DELICIOUS cinnamon apple chips for the football games:

slice apple, sprinkle with cinnamon, put in oven at 400 degrees cook on each side for 30 minutes until crispy on outside and soft on the inside.

My challenge this next week is going to be based off the BODYRock.tv blog.  http://www.bodyrock.tv/ They're a workout blog/website all about clean eating and at-home workouts FOR FREE!  One of their trainers or "bodyrockers" started a 30-day challenge that I started Friday with the Fit Test.  It's pretty much a 12-15 min tabata training plan.  Tabata is a circuit training workout on steriods.  Traditional tabata has 6-8 exercises done from 20 secs (as many as you can get) and 10 sec rest.  The BodyRock workouts have been 50 secs on 10 sec rest.  I want to work on my speed for my race since I only have to run 3.1 miles, so I need to incorporate some nterval/circuit training.  After lifting I've done the fit test and fit day #2 workout and ended on the ground dripping sweat and shaking!!  12 minutes and I'm dripping and shaking--my kind of workout!!  I will start adding my stats for each workout and the workouts themselves.  The diet side of it is pretty much clean eating, but it makes 5 rules that make it a lot easier to understand.  

THE RULES:

1. I will eat veggies 5x per day, with every meal, and they will be 2 cup size portion

2. I will eat lean protein (chicken, turkey, fish, egg whites, cottage cheese- low fat) 5x per day and the portion size will be no bigger than the palm of my hand (about 4 oz)

3. I will eat every 3 hours

4. I will only eat carbs (outside of veggies) with breakfast or within 2 hours of a hard workout

5. I will drink 2 liters of water per day, 1 cup of tea per day, and only black coffee.  No pop (not that I drink it anyway), no sugary juices, no alcohol.

It's going to be challenging, but nothing worth having is, right?  I think this is why I LOVE exercise and nutrition so much.  There is no easy way to reach your goal.  You can use all the diet pills and plans you want and you MAY get the hot body you've always wanted, but I GUARANTEE if you didn't do it the old school way (clean eating and exercising regularly) it will NOT last.  I like that whoever you are, whatever level you're at, if you don't put in the time at the gym, don't prepare your foods properly, and don't make sacrifices you WILL NOT succeed (in the long run).  

ALSO, I was SOO happy that one of my close friends, Kelsey, texted me today if I would help him get into shape and live healthier with workouts and nutrition advice.  I'm SOO excited people are coming to ME for exercise and nutrition advice..it makes me feel AMAZING.  Not only because they see me as a source of some knowledge of exercise and nutrition, but they want me to become a process of their road to a new them!!  It made me realize that I am finally where I'm supposed to be, on the road to helping people become healthier and stronger!  Can't wait to help others as well :)

Well I think that's enough for now!  Til next time and one step closer to a hardbody,

Mo

  

Week 1 Look Back & Week 2

Week 1...CHECK!!

Okay, so far so good.  I made it through the first week of my New Year's Resolution.  I ate clean, I drank AT LEAST 64oz of water per day (not counting what I drank during cardio or lifting) and drank green tea every day.  Below is a picture of all my meals during the day. By preparing all my food before I left for the day I never had to worry about being hungry and binging on some fast food or junk food crap.

It took a little bit of time each morning, but I truly believe that this is the reasoning behind my success for clean eating.  When I get hungry I get angry and fussy and so I'll eat whatever I can find, so instead of grabbing for chips and salsa or going to Jimmy John's I had a small protein bar or chicken and veggies.  I think the water made a big difference too.  By adding more water into my diet my stomach was tricked into being full, so I wasn't mindlessly eating.  

After a great first week I can't stop now!  This next week is going to really be a struggle because I start back with classes, will be working both jobs, and still have to fit time in to exercise.  I'm going to really have to push myself to wake up early to plan out my meals, exercise early, and keep pushing myself through.  So that I do not over do it this first week back to reality I am going to keep drinking 64oz of water daily, tea daily, and I'm going to start tracking my workouts and what I eat every day.  Since I want to be healthier physically I have to push myself past limits I've never seen.  In order to go past limits you have to know where you've been.  So how do I push myself in lifts or interval sprints if I didn't know how much I benched or how fast I ran for how long the week before?  I'm not going to use any fancy fitness journals..I'm just going to use a good, old-fashioned college-ruled notebook.  I will write down what I ate, how much I ate, the calories, how long I ran or biked, and how much I lifted each day. I know it will be time consuming and may annoy me, but I know in the long run it will lead to a healthier, stronger future!  

So here's to week 2 and staying strong!

Til next week and another step closer to a hardbody,

Mo

New Year, New Me

So looking back on 2011, I can't be upset at all.  I did some amazing things and learned SOO much about myself.  I ran 2 marathons and one 1/2 marathon, watched one of my brothers get married to an amazing girl, learned SOOO much about nutrition, fitness, and my body, worked harder than I ever have before, got to work for some AMAZING people, found new job callings, and discovered what I want to do for the rest of my life (FINALLY).  AND even added another tattoo to my collection (up to 3 now)!

I'm actually quite proud of myself.  I'm such a stronger person because of all this, but I know I am no where near my potential, yet.  So, this year I have not really set a New Year's Resolution because mainly I find them counterproductive.  You end up setting this extreme goal, then after a week or even a month you haven't reached it and you end up quitting, and feel even worse than you did before the year ended.

Instead this year my goal or "resolution" is just to become a healthier, happier version of my current self. I know this sounds extremely broad and you may think I'm setting myself up for failure, but I promise I'm setting myself up for not only achievement, but greatness.
      This will take 2 steps:
             1. Eat clean from this point on.  AKA only eating foods that once had a mother or could be grown in the earth.
             2.To make myself a healthier, happier me I will make a "challenge" for myself each week.  The challenges will be both for my mental and physical health.  I feel that smaller, shorter goals are a better way at achieving your long-term goals because the results can be seen right away and completing them does not seem so daunting.

The first week challenge to a healthier, happier me will be: at least 64oz of water a day (not counting what I drink during workouts) and at least one cup of green tea, daily.  I really want to work on cleansing myself after the mess of the holidays.  During this week I will flush out all those toxins and start with a clean slate :) AND of course I will be eating clean EVERYDAY, EVERY meal.  Wish me luck!

Til next week, a new challenge, and one step closer to a hardbody,
Mo