Tuesday events

Tuesday was a rather fun day. I had my workouts, my errands, my house cleaning, my laundry... Ultimately, I had a lot to do.
My morning started at 5 A.M. with another early morning run. I had every intention of running 4 miles, per my Half Marathon training plan. Getting out of bed, I quickly noticed that my calves (specifically my left calf) were really sore. I decided to wear my compression socks to alleviate the discomfort during my run. I love my compression socks. Yes they are hot pink, but it's not just their good looks that I love. I am convinced that my compression socks are helping prevent common running injuries. Ie: shin splints, tendinitis, etc. My husband turned me onto the magic of compression socks a couple months ago. At first I was like "Holy moly those are some EXPENSIVE socks!" But honestly they are worth the money.
Anyhoo- my calves were really sore (Thank you Saun T and T25) so I put my compression socks on an hit the pavement running. It was an awesome run and started off really nice. Shortly after a mile in my calves were really hurting. I decided not to push my luck and seriously injure myself, and cut my run short.

After I got home I immediately laid on my couch with ice packs on my legs. My calves were aching so terribly it was like having charlie-horses radiate up my legs. It was super uncomfortable, but that didn't stop my cat from climbing up on me asking for pets. Cats have zero social awareness. Me: "Hello! I'm hurting over here!" Merlin: "Oh... well, your hands aren't hurting so pet me some more."

Matching facial expressions with my cat.

Judgemental-Cat will judge you.

After a good icing, my legs were feeling much better. I was able to get up and move around with little discomfort. Running errands was my least favorite part of the day. I love having groceries in my fridge, but I don't enjoy shopping for groceries. Thankfully, Derek came along with me and helped me shop.

In the afternoon we decided to head to the gym and swim some laps before doing T25. My goal was to swim 800 yard consecutively and time myself to see where my progress is. 

I enjoyed my swim-cap face lift! HAHAHA!

I swam 800 yards in a total of 19 mins. Woah! A wee bit slower than I was shooting for. I definitely have some room for improvement. The next 26 days will hopefully be enough time for me to shave off some minutes. I am still happy with my swimming progress. I mean, the fact that I can even swim 800 yards is an accomplishment.

After a nice 25 minutes of T25, I called it a day. I was wiped out. 

Rare days

Greetings blog-osphere!
I hope your Monday was as awesome as mine was. I was really on top of things. It's rare for me to have such a productive day. I honestly think I was the best version of myself, and I am so glad for it.
I started my day with a 5 A.M. wake up. Time to get ready to run! After preparing coffee for my husband and I, I sat down and ate some steel cut oats. [Yummy] The run-route I picked for the day was  3 hilly miles. I am starting to really love running hills, especially if they are at the beginning of the run.

This is my 5K route. I call it "The Snake" due to the shape the red lines make on the map. Silly, I know. This might be my fastest 5K time yet. Kudos to me! I seem to have run faster due to the shorter distance... or maybe I was running faster to get home to my second cup of coffee? I knew it was waiting for me all steamy and delicious.
The rest of the day I cooked, cleaned up, took two Sports Nutrition quizzes (Almost finished with my certification!!), and did my T25 workout for the day. I kept myself busy ALL day.
I am still enjoying T25, but the other day (last week) I think I was a little overly ambitious with it and ended up with super sore calves. My left calf is much more sore. Micro-tears? I don't know for sure. Unfortunately, it has become uncomfortable to run because of my calves. I am going to baby them for a bit. I've already started the R.I.C.E. to help me recover.

Weekend of greatness

Howdy y'all!
(Proof I live in the Southwest)
Derek and I enjoyed a fun and relaxing weekend here in the desert, and we didn't have to escape to the mountains this time! Saturday morning I found myself wide awake at 4 A.M. so I got up and made some Bob's Red mill Steel Cut Oats. It takes 20-30 mins to make this stuff, but it is literally the tastiest oatmeal out there. Really, they won an award and everything. I let Derek sleep in a little bit, but eventually woke him up so he could eat and prepare for our long run. It usually takes us an hour due to eating, digesting, bathroom visits, dressing, etc.
Our route for the day took us through the rolling foothills of the mountains. It was gorgeous out! Not too hot or humid. I wasn't feeling 100% due to digestive issues, but I pushed through. (I also forced Derek to carry toilet paper in his pack just in case I needed to use a bush.) Aside from the crappy start (pun), I had other troubles on this run. Everything exploded out of my pack at one point, then the zipper pull broke off of my pack when I went to secure everything back inside of it, my shins and calves started hurting pretty early on (Thankfully I brought Ibuprofen), and I kept getting bad cramps. Yuck! However bad this run was, I pushed through it. I finished my 8 mile run happy and proud of myself for persevering.

I actually maintained my target pace pretty well on this run. The spikes on the graph correspond to me having to walk a little bit. Unfortunately, I had to walk a handful of times, but I am still very happy with my 8 mile performance.

After I finished, I parked my butt on the couch and put my feet up. Oh, and I put an ice pack on my head to prevent over-heating. Derek laughed at me and said I looked like a nun with the towel over my head. Between my red face, towel, and icepack, I think I look pretty stylish. [laugh] Seriously, if you still look good after an 8 miler, you are either inhuman or not doing it right.
We took a nice long nap after this long run. I certainly needed it. It seems that runs longer than 4 miles make me tired. I often go back to bed once I get back from my runs. I guess it isn't so bad considering I usually get back from my runs between 6:30-7:00 A.M..
I also got a delivery Saturday! Look at my new tri-gear! So pink and pretty! I even took the time and effort to try it all on, which is really impressive due to how sweaty and sore I was from my run. It fits perfectly, if a wee bit more snug than I would usually wear but I've read that it is normal. I have to swim in this gear, so it has got to be tight-fitting. Hey, it's tight, but I don't look like a sausage so I am happy.
Sunday morning I had every intention of getting up and going on a 20+ mile bike ride... however, the vodka sodas I had Saturday night had a different plan. (Super fun night, btw) My hangover prevented me from getting on my bike. [Sad face] I'll have to make up the bike ride sometime next week.

Changes you never saw coming

Friday was a happy day! (And very productive) My husband has been away for work all week long and finally came home. YAY! I've missed him terribly, but it is true what they say. Distance does make the heart grow fonder.

Louie and I went on a nice long walk in our neighborhood. It was a gorgeous day!

He did so good. It was mildly hot but really humid so he drank lots of water on this walk. I am so glad I bought him a Gulpy water bottle. I know he's a chihuahua, but he came still get overheated fast.

The rest of my day I spent cleaning my house. Admittedly, I let the house go while Derek was away. Naughty naughty. It was kinda nice not having to clean up every day. As I was working around the house I noticed just how much athletics and sports have taken over our house...

It's an organize chaos, I promise.

Exactly when did this happen? 6 months ago I would never have allowed clutter on my countertops. Now it seems that I don't mind having easy access to my sports nutrients. I like that my running hats are all stacked up and ready to grab. The trunk by the front door is a perfect "transition station" of sorts. My mom would certainly not approve of our new style of decorating, but I don't seem to mind it. I don't even mind that our spin bike is now a permanent fixture amongst our living room furniture. What? I like to spin while I watch The View. Don't judge.

Still kickin'

I took a little [unintentional] break from my blog. Life has been a little ho-hum lately and I haven't felt very inspired to blog about it. I'm still training for my triathlon... still training for my half marathon... still doing T25. Still still still.
Here's a quick update about what I've been up to during my blogging absence.

Last weekend Derek and I slept through our 5 A.M. alarm so we missed our long run. [insert sad face here] I believe I've mentioned before that we have to wake up at dawn to run due to the extreme heat here in Arizona. Unfortunately, waking at 8 A.M. means that it is already 95-100 degrees out, AND it has been humid here! Ew!! The dew point has been high enough to where it is a health concern to do any endurance sport out in the heat. Blah!

Anyhoo- we decided to switch up our run and escape the heat. We piled into the car and drove up the mountain. Yay for cooler temps! The mountain is always really gorgeous and the temps were a good 20 degrees cooler than the valley. We put in nearly 6 miles trail running and hiking. It was awesome! Afterward, we went to eat at a local restaurant that seems to cater to road bikers. (We saw many road bikers ride up and down the mountain. It's 25 miles up! Crazy!) On the menu was muscle milk blueberry and banana pancakes! YES PLEASE! They were delicious! 

 Back down in the Valley, life continued as the week progressed. I continued my triathlon training. I have been more diligent about waking up at 5 A.M. to get my runs in. My new "normal" is a 5 miler!
Swimming is going well. I tried swimming with a cap the other day and found that I much prefer it! It's nice not having stray hair in my face while I swim. So far I have timed my swimming and I can swim the 800 yards in 16 minutes. Not too fast or too slow. I think I fall right there in the middle.

At home I am continuing my T25 adventure. I still love these workouts. It's been three weeks now and I am still going strong. I really enjoy the lower focus workout. The Ab intervals workout is also really fun. I've seen some really amazing T25 results pics on Instagram. I am hoping to have good results too.

I took a selfie the other day to see my progress. I'm certainly not where I want to be (I want to drop some fat %) but I need to remind myself that my body is still pretty cool because I can run half marathons AND triathlons. I'm trying not to get bogged down by what my body looks like. I want to focus on what my body can do. As long as it can still run long distances, bike for hours, and swim lengths at a time, I AM HAPPY. 

I made it through another BIG section of my Nutrition class. I spent a lot fair amount of time reading my textbook. Merlin, I guess, decided that I was working too hard for his taste. I ended up with a fat cat on my lap purring away. He is an awful awesome study buddy!

Today was "Blah"...

Today was exactly what the title says, "Blah". It started off really promising. I woke up at 6AM, had my cup of coffee and enjoyed the morning. Louie and I went on a nice 20 min walk around our neighborhood. My husband made me an iced protein coffee which I enjoyed while studying. (Super yummy BTW)  Last week I got behind on my nutrition class, so I decided to take the day and devote it to catching up. I did manage to catch up on my nutrition studies (YAY!) but that is where the good day ended.
Our air conditioner went out. It's Arizona people! We NEED A.C.! We made a quick trip to the local hardware store to buy new fuses, but that didn't solve our problem.... and our house was heating up pretty quickly. We decided to bite the bullet and call a technician. Long, sweaty story short; our condenser was out. The part is now replaced and we've got the cool air flowing.... even if our bank account is a little lighter.
Unfortunately, all the drama, heat, and waiting for the tech caused me to miss my T25 workout. [Insert sad face here]
Somehow I did manage to finish the day under my daily calorie count. I did real good! Go me! And I got an A on my nutrition quiz! Go me again!
Derek and I decided that we will double up the T25 workouts tomorrow to cover the one we missed today. We'll get it done. It'll hurt, but we'll do both workouts. We're awesome like that.

"Best wife ever" Tilapia dinner

Friday August 9th I made this meal for Derek. It turned out so well he took a picture and Instagramed it with the tag "bestwifeever".  Not to toot my own horn, but this dinner was super good. I was very surprised.

FISH:
*Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
* Two frozen 4 oz tilapia fillets rinsed with water, patted dry, and seasoned with lemon, pepper and a little salt.
*Cook the fish for 15 mins. If you use thawed fish, only cook for 10 mins.
TOPPING:
*In a pan, combine 1 tbsp coconut oil, 2 tsp minsed garlic, 1-2 tbsp basil (I used dried basil, but you could also use fresh basil to taste.), a pinch of pepper, 1/2 cup white wine (I used a cheap-o $5 bottle), and 1 tbsp butter. (I rarely use butter, but this does add a creamy texture to this sauce)
*Cut up 3 roma tomatoes and add to the pan.
*Cook on medium-low setting until the liquid thickens.
OTHER STUFF:
*Steam frozen uncut green beans for about 10 minutes.
*Either prepare the brown rice from scratch, use minute rice, or the microwaveable packs.
SERVING:
*1/2 cup brown rice.
*1/2-1 cup green beans.
*1/2 cup of the topping sauce.
*4oz tilapia fillet.

I calculated an estimate for the Tilapia dinner I served. Based on what I put on my plate, it came out to be approximately 472 calories. Yummy AND healthy!

Sunday running

I took a little break from blogging due to having a rather boring week. I probably only ran 7 miles total. It was a super hot week, which means I have to wake up a 5 A.M. in order to get a run in. I am a morning person, but I am not a morning person to the extent that waking up at 5 A.M. is easy for me. My husband and I started the T25 Challenge on Monday. We did daily workouts Monday-Friday for 25 minutes each. These circuit workouts are really challenging! I find that I am careful with some moves because they are high-impact and tend to hurt my knees. I can't risk my knees! I'm a runner! I still need to take my "before" pictures for the T25 Challenge, and I will post them once they are available. I will enjoy comparing my "before" and "after" 10 weeks from now.

This morning's run went well. I got my nutrition dialed in. I ate 1/4 cup of steel cut oats, 1 tbsp natural peanut butter, 1 tbsp agave nectar, and 1/2 banana. In the future, I could probably cut back on the added ingredients of that particular breakfast considering the calorie count was 455. WOW! But my body sure liked every calorie.

I maintained a relatively uniform pace, and I am happy to say that I didn't take any breaks. Yup! No walking for this chick!  I've decided that now I am more confident with my ability to run longer distances, I want to start focusing on pushing my pace. While I am not ashamed of my comfy 11 min/mile pace, I know I am capable of running faster. What happened to my 9:30 min/mile pace?!

Happy running!

All in all, I am very pleased with my run. It was a hot, sweaty, comfortably slow run... and I didn't walk! Wooo! 

Sabino Canyon adventure

All smiles!

Derek and I woke up REALLY early to meet some friends at Sabino Canyon for our group run. When I say "early" I am talking 4 A.M.. Ouch. When the alarm went off my husband was so disoriented that he didn't understand why we were getting up so early. I can't blame him; the sun wasn't even up yet!

Loving the wind in my hair.

We fueled for our canyon run with bananas smothered in peanut butter and all-natural fig bars.
We met up with our friends and started out on our run at about 5:30 A.M.. The weather was gorgeous and the canyon was so green! Surprisingly, or not surprisingly, there were many other people running and hiking the canyon at 5:30 A.M.. Aside from the early morning, I was so pumped to run with my group. I ran like the wiiiiiiind. [laugh] Just kidding, but I did manage a 9:30 min/mile pace for the first mile....after that it was ALL climbing. I was thankful that I've been training on the hills near my house. At least I had an idea of the pain I'd be going through. It was easy to ignore the discomfort when my surroundings were so stunningly beautiful. I didn't see many animals, but all the plants were so healthy and vibrantly green.

And did I mention that there was running water?! WATER.... in the desert.... what is this substance? [laugh] 

It was really green and very serene.

It was a beautiful morning run. Running up the canyon was as difficult as you'd imagine. I managed to run 2.25 miles up into the canyon. At that point I needed to eat something because I was running on fumes. I tried out Shot Blocks on this run. They were yummy and very chewy, and even better was that they went down easy and digested easy too. Success! I ran the 2.25 miles back after that. I didn't make it to the top of the canyon. From bottom to top, the canyon is 3.75 miles. I've got some improving to do. Now that I know how fun the run was, we will be returning NEXT Friday. Maybe it'll become my normal Friday routine? Hmmm.... that would mean waking up at 4 A.M. every Friday and I don't know if I want to commit to that.

Hump day? It's PUMP day!

Wednesday. Ah Wednesday...
I accidentally slept in so my day started a little late. Oops! But once I did get going I jumped on my spin bike for 45 minutes of HIIT.

Notice my dog pouting in the back ground.

I suspect my animals hate this spin bike because of the noise it makes when I turn up the resistance. I really enjoy spinning workouts so I add them into my mornings a couple days a week. Yes, I moved the spin bike into my living room. After 45 minutes I was dripping with sweat, but I still took a selfie.

The weather has returned to the triple digits here in Arizona, so Louie didn't get his walk. Bad mommy for sleeping in, BAD! I tried to make it up to him by letting him hang out in the front yard while I watered my plants, but he didn't last long. I guess he understood that it was too hot for a walk.

I spent my evening at the gym. I love my gym and I really enjoy working out so I don't mind spending a few hours there a day. Wednesday's focus was lower-body strength training. Leg and glute day!!

Here's a recap of my routine: 10 mins warming up on the elliptical, weighted back extensions, walking lunges across the gym 4x, squats on the Smith machine, hip extensions on smith machine, deadlifts, plie squats, and weighted calf raises. I was a busy girl! 

Lifting makes me happy.

I finished off my workout with 30 mins of incline walking on the treadmill. I was originally going to run.... but my legs were kinda stiff from lifting. Imagine that! Walking on an incline helps loosen my muscles so it really helped. I managed to keep my heart rate in the "fat burning zone" so I got the workout I wanted from the treadmill. All-in-all, It was a great workout.

Thursday is my rest day, but I think I'll swim some laps. My legs are stiff and sore from Wednesday, so I need to loosen them up. 

National Cheesecake Day

Did anyone else know yesterday July 30th was National Cheesecake Day?
My best friend Brett and I decided to celebrate at the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. But before I could indulge in cheesecake I needed to earn it. I hit this gym to focus on strength training my upper body. Curls, overhead triceps extensions, bent-over flys, bent-over rows, incline chest press, chest fly, lat pull-down, triceps pull-down.... I am sure I have missed one or two other workouts I did.

After weight lifting I needed to do a little cardio work so I decided to swim laps. My legs and hip flexors are still sore so I needed a low-impact workout. Was swimming laps after my upper-body lifting hard? Yes.
Eventually it was time for dinner.... and this happened:

The new S'mores cheesecake. OMG this was divine!