Sorry for the delay...

Hey everyone!  Sorry for being absent lately. Last week I was at the US Naval Academy watching my sister get commissioned as a Marine Corps officer (yay!) and now I am travelling around getting ready for our next duty station move in just a couple weeks/  Posts may be sporatic, but I will try and get stuff up here when I can!  For now, just keep working towards becoming your healthiest you.  Summer is such a wonderful time to get started because the weather is nice, fruits are in season, and its so much easier to be positive.  For my runner followers out there, have you signed up for a summer race? If you have, hows the training going? Keep working hard everyone!

Motivation Monday! May 28th, 2012

Today's motivation monday! Do you know how much your body is capable of?



Motivation Monday! May 21st, 2012

A little entertainment for your motivation monday! :)

Time for a Workout Switch.

Well, I've officially had to make a temporary switch to weightlifting.  My knee is injured enough that I can't run more than 2 miles without some pretty nasty pain deciding to show up.  So for the past couple of weeks I have been hitting the gym and pumping some iron. :) Which is slightly awkward since I work out on a military base in the same gym as some very macho guys.  And then there is me... a very not macho girl.  But oh well.  I'm sure its a source of entertainment for those guys. 

There are a couple reasons I switched to weightlifting for a bit.  First, its to let my knee heal and to build up the muscles and tendons around it to help that healing process.  Second, because it is a really beneficial thing to switch around your workout a couple times each year.  (These rotations are called mesocycles, just in case you were curious. :)  It helps with muscle confusion.  After always running for each workout, my muscles get very efficient at it, which is great for running, but not for constant improvement.  That is the reason that after my racing season, I switch to weightlifting, or in the case of once I move, P90X.  No more complacency for these legs!  I will be doing these gym/ P90X workouts for about the next 3 1/2 months, with a couple running weeks thrown in there for variation and for when I can't get to a gym.  After that, I will switch back to a primarily running regime, starting out slowly and working up to my usual long distances.  And the best part about weightlifting for a bit?  I feel super strong and I get to wear my super cute pink weightlifting gloves! Sweet!!



Calling Shawn Johnson Fat? Really???

http://www.examiner.com/article/olympic-gymnast-shawn-johnson-loses-25-pounds-after-cruel-fat-jokes

I saw this article this morning and I find it so ridiculous, I had to post about it.  The article is about professional gymnast Shawn Johnson losing 25 lbs because people were calling her fat.  FAT!!! She is a professional gymnast for crying out loud!  Now I'm not criticising her for losing weight.  If she is healthy and comfortable in her own skin now, then I am very happy for her!  What I can't believe  is the fact that some people were actually calling her fat.  Not everyone is built the same!  Shawn Johnson has a very athletic build.  She has a ton of power in her gymnastics because she has incredible muscles!  And muscles take up space.  With America's insane obesity problem, she is the last person anyone should be criticising for weight, unless they are her doctor or coach.  There is a difference between fat and muscle.  Finally, there is a difference between telling someone you are concerned about them because of their health/ weight and blasting someone on the internet. Shawn Johnson, if you ever read this, don't listen to those jokers that called you fat.

Gah! Okay. Rant done. :)

Motivation Monday! May 14th, 2012

Good Monday!  Here is your thought and motivation for the week:



Do you know what your limits are?  I thought my limit was 13 miles.  Turns out, its 34.  But just you wait, someday I'm going to blow that out of the water too.

Yummy Fruit Dip!

With the summer months coming, recipes like fruit dip are out in full force.  Most are full of whipped cream and other ridiculously sugary foods that basically takes the healthiness of fruit and laughs in its face.  I did find one recipe though that, all things considered, is a winner for this summer.  It still has some sugar, but also contains natural peanut butter and plain greek yogurt, both of which are healthy for you.  Not to mention, it takes about 3 minutes to make. And it sure makes it easier to grab the fruit for a snack instead of the ice cream!

*******************************************

Yummy Fruit Dip

Ingredients:

1 C. Plain Greek Yogurt

3/4 C. Natural Peanut Butter

1/6 C. Powdered Sugar

Fruit for Dipping

Mix Plain Greek Yogurt, Natural Peanut Butter, and Powdered Sugar together in a bowl.

Stir.

Put in a pretty container and serve with fruit! Yum!!!

(Please excuse my not pretty container...all my pretty stuff is already packed up and moved.)

****************************************



Motivation Monday! May 7, 2012

This is an awesome quote that really demonstrates the difference that can happen when you commit to something. When you take the step to saying I WILL do this, you give yourself no options, and thats when results are seen.  Some physical, but mainly mental.  Health as an interest is something you do when you can...and if you fail, its okay, but health as a commitment is when you can't look back.  This week I challenge you to commit to fitness and health.  Start with just this week.  You'll be amazed how easy it is when you have no excuse. :)  Now go out there and kick this week's bum!!

50K Number 2: Mission Complete

This past weekend, I ran my second 50K.  Now that I've done two, I can officially qualify myself as an ultrarunner! (At least in my book.)  I wanted to take more pictures this time to show you what kind of "trails" are involved in these races...but that plan didn't work out very well.  So I'll just tell you the story instead. 

It all started Saturday morning.  At 5:30 AM. The sun was not even up for the first hour of running. It was chilly, but nice. The first few miles were a pretty steady pace up the first mountain. But around mile 12, I almost blew out my knee.  Through a lot of praying, some very proper form, and what I can only say was God's grace, the pain went away and I was able to keep running.  The area was beautiful, but dangerous. Sometimes the trail was nice and wide like this:

And then I came across this:

That is the other side of the trail.  Across the river.  And those rocks?  Not enough to cross without getting completely soaked.  Nothing like a solid extreme trail run.  Unfortunately thats the end of my pictures for the race.  Because shortly after this, it started raining.  Then thundering. Then sleeting.  Then HAILING!  It was ridiculous!  And so so cold.  Several people got mild hypothermia.  I either did or got very close. I could not move my hands, which were already swollen from the altitude.  I sprinted for a while just to stay warm.  Which was not done in proper form, and hurt my knee again.  Even having grown up in Wisconsin, I have never been so cold in my life.  The 3 1/2 mile mountain climb at mile 23(ish) was followed  by the final 5 mile stretch downhill.  By the time I got there, it was done raining, but the trails that started looking like the top picture were now a minimum of 3 inches of mud.  My shoe started out looking almost new, but ended up looking like this:

EWWWW!!!!!

With two miles left, a wonderful lady gave me a pair of socks a friend had given her for my hands. That small act of kindness and layer of protection helped so much.  It is also a perfect example of just one of the many acts of kindness showed on the trails.  As much as we are racing against each other, all the runners support and encourage each other.  It truly is a community. 

In the last mile, I started minorly hyperventilating, just because I was so exhausted and needed more oxygen. (Don' worry, it was in control in less than a minute.)  I finally crossed the finish line after 9 hours, 20 minutes, and 12 seconds.  I placed 325 out of 354.  Very close to last, but thats okay.  At the end, my sister, (who finished two hours ahead of me) threw a sweatshirt on me and got some food in me, and I finally started feeling again.  I'd like to give a shout out to my sister here, who really helped me believe I could become an ultrarunner and waited in the cold weather for another two hours for me to finish the race.  Without her and my husband pushing and encouraging me, I would never have thought I could move myself over 30 miles with only my two (very calloused) feet.  Every step, every freezing moment, every stab of pain was 100% worth it.  I pushed my body beyond its limits and found that I am capable of so much more than I ever imagined.  And I can't wait until my next race! 

PS.  The good thing about the freezing rain?  Much faster recovery time, since I basically took an ice bath while running...

Oh! Plus I got some pretty awesome shorts and a shirt. :)