Training update

Just another rather boring training update ... but I have to say this blog is helping me stay on track!

Sunday: I wanted to do a hill run over the weekend, but ended up wimping out!  I had a hard time dragging myself out of the house ... just wanted to sit on the couch and DO NOTHING.  My hubby suggested instead of getting in the car and driving all the way to the hills that I just run around the 'hood.  So, that's what I did.  I ran over 10 flat miles and it felt pretty awesome.  So I didn't do a hill run ... oh well ... at least I worked on my distance!

Monday:  Mom boot camp (my kids wanted to workout with me so we did a bunch of random things ... squats, oblique crunches, jumping jacks, lunges, etc. ... fun times!)  Then I hopped on the elliptical for a 30 minute glute program.  My glutes need some serious work. :)

Tuesday:  IT COULD NOT BE MORE BEAUTIFUL OUTSIDE!!!  I took Zoe for a 2.5 mile hike in the foothills, then went for a short trail run.  I felt so fortunate to be outside running in the sunshine.  I only ran a little over 4 miles ... but they were hilly miles and it was a fun change of pace.  

Felt very lucky to call this my "gym" today!

** Friday Fun **

Strawberry Mice ... chocolate chip eyes & nose, banana chip ears, licorice tails ... and CHEESE of course!

Someone was "Star Student" in class this week ... which meant a photo-filled poster all about her and fun treats for her classmates on Friday.  These little mice are a family favorite, they seem to show up in our house at least once a year for classroom treats. 



Accountability ... after all, I am supposedly "in training!"

Last week I felt a nasty cold coming on.  This time last year, I got the worst cold ever and my training suffered badly ... hard to run when you can't breathe!  So, I've been eating well, popping lots of vitamins and keeping the workouts minimal in hopes of boosting my immune system.

The weekend was pretty slow ... we had family in town and I loved every minute of spending time with them and NOT working out.  Come Sunday I took the puppy for a walk, did a few sprints and my lungs were on fire.  :( 

By Monday I was feeling quite a bit better.  Motivated by beating the odds and getting into Robie, I let the more intense workouts resume.  So ... here we are on Wednesday and my legs are JELLO!  Love it!

Monday:

• 3 mile hike with the family (minimal cardio, but I'm gonna count it anyway!)
• 67 minute hill program on the elliptical -- I pushed hard the WHOLE time.  I went 1/4 mile further than the last time I did the program -- yay!

Tuesday:

• Crossfit workout at home (my throwing up little girl kinda ruined my plans to actually GO to crossfit) 
• 5 rounds of:
• 10 burpees (these are so hard for me, seem easy, but kick my arse)
• 15 kettlebell swings
• 20 box jumps
• 30 minute quad workout on the elliptical (something I learned: pedaling backward is HARD!)

Wednesday:

• 7.58 mile run to the top of Tablerock and back down.  IN. THE. WIND.  I felt stronger running up (probably because the wind was pushing me) ... running down was brutal AGAINST the wind.  Trying not to be bummed that the distance clocked in at a mile less than we guessed it was.  Gotta work on doing this run twice ... back-to-back!

My motivation level is great right now ... but it certainly ebbs and flows.  Hoping the hype sticks for a bit.  This POST and VIDEO were super inspiring on so many levels!  

Something yummy ...

One of my MOST FAVORITE foods from childhood are my mom's stuffed peppers.  Full of ground beef, white rice, and lots of cheese, they were (are) comfort food plus!  I have always made them for my family too, although over the years they have evolved ~ ground beef replaced with ground turkey, white rice replaced with brown, ... cheese {sadly} reduced a bit.  My NEW FAVORITE version of stuffed peppers includes the ever-popular "perfect protein" quinoa.  All the gooey comfort yumminess you could want ~ chock-full of good-for-you stuff too! 

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/4 cup cooked quinoa*
6 bell peppers (any color) tops cut off, membranes/seeds removed
   (reserve any extra pieces of pepper, dice)
1 lb. ground turkey
1 small white or yellow onion, chopped
1 15 oz. can low-sodium black beans
1 15 oz. can fire-roasted tomatoes (I like to use the tex-mex version with chiles)
1/2 cup salsa
2 tbs taco seasoning
1 cup shredded cheese (I like sharp cheddar, can use colby/jack, mozzarella, whatever you like)

* 1/2 cup uncooked, rinsed quinoa to 1 cup of water and a small pinch of salt, boil then simmer till all heat is absorbed.  Will yield approximately 1 1/4 cup cooked quinoa.


DIRECTIONS: 
Fill a large pot with 3 inches of water, working in batches place peppers cut side up in boiling water, cover pot, reduce heat and allow to steam for 6-8 minutes, till peppers are soft.  (You can skip this step, but you will have a crunchier pepper in the end.)  Drain peppers upside down on a paper towel.

In saute pan, brown ground turkey.  Add chopped onion and reserved pepper pieces, cook until soft.  Add canned beans, canned tomatoes, salsa, quinoa and taco seasoning and 1/2 cup of cheese. Place peppers upright in baking dish.  Sprinkle insides with salt.  Add a pinch of shredded cheese to the bottom of each pepper then spoon in filling.  Top with remaining cheese.  Bake in 375 degree oven for approximately 25 minutes, till hot and bubbly.

All ready for the oven!

Robie Creek ... 3rd year!!!

I AM IN!!!!

Now, some people don't get too worked up about snagging a spot. 

Some patient souls choose to leave their participation to chance!

... not me ...

I must have an official, confirmed, verified

race registration and "ticket to run" to MOTIVATE ME! 

Robie filled in record time again, this year -- oh how people love to torture themselves!

   

I am really, really excited to run this year.  Bring on the SAMURAI (might have to bust out some ninja moves on those hills!)

“Warriors take chances. Like everyone else, they fear failing, but they refuse to let fear control them.” 

 SATURDAY APRIL 21, 2012 WILL YOU HAVE IT IN YOU?

To celebrate, we headed for the trails, despite the falling snow ...

gotta stretch those puppy legs ...

and kiddo legs. 

It's been a loooooong weekend indoors! :)

Love their sweet hats ~ brought back from Germany by their grandparents!

Trail girl



She's getting spoiled ... loves trails & the views!

Zoe continues to do AWESOME with me off the leash out on the trails -- she always comes when called, constantly looks at me to see where we are going, pauses to wait for me when she gets too far ahead.

It's back home on the leash where she has regressed horribly!  So annoying!  She is flat out stubborn and digs her heels in if it's not her idea of where we should be going.  It's embarassing to drag her up and down the street. :( 

I wish we only had trails to roam too little girl, but it is what it is.  Let's shape up on that leash!

I haven't done squat ... MUST DO SQUATS!

It's been a busy, busy week ... seems like everything is going on at school this week ... we've had Valentine's to prepare, treats to make, posters to create, tests to study for, presentations to practice -- and it's ONLY WEDNESDAY!

After my great hill run on Saturday, I decided to take the next day off.  That day off turned into three. YIKES!  My workouts have suffered greatly this week ... in case you count trips around my kitchen and up and down my stairs.  I feel like I've been going in circles.

I decided last night both the puppy and I were going stir-crazy and needed some serious exercise.  Given that my morning was party-free/volunteer-free/baking-free (woooohoooo!) I thought it would be a great time to take her on a short hike, then take myself on a nice hill run back up the same route I did Saturday.

Then I woke up this morning to SNOW!!!!  UGH!!!

Now granted, it was a beautiful sight to behold ... for about 2 minutes.  (Honestly Lady Winter, if you haven't shown up by now, I'm not really interested in seeing you around these parts till next year.)

We were all running late looking for lost gloves, packing shoes to change into from snowboots, etc. so I was already a tad grumpy getting out the door.  Then it took me 40 minutes to get to my kindergartners school.  40 minutes on a route that normally takes me no more than 7!!!  I don't think there is anything more frustrating than sitting in traffic for no good reason ... there was no accident, no mountains of snow, no herd of elk making a miraculous city street crossing.  Just some overly-cautious morons and REALLY BADLY TIMED LIGHTS AT INTERSECTIONS!  I sound a bit silly getting so irate over something so simple, but geez ... what a time waster!!!

I am queen of excuses and in addition to my crappy commute, I have a sore throat and what appears to be the onset of some bug that I do not have time for.  I downed a decent breakfast, took my vitamins and gulped down some Emergen-C just in case!  (**Please don't get sick ... please don't get sick ... please don't get sick!**)  I debated a morning spent on the couch, afterall my free-time was half-over anyway.  But, when I reminded myself how many Valentines treats I'd consumed yesterday (damn Berry Crunch Muffins), I knew what had to be done. 

I reluctantly put on my shoes, tied the dog down where I could keep an eye on her and jumped on the elliptical for a 55 minute hill climb while I watched LIVE!  It felt pretty mundane today, I'm not gonna lie.  But at least my "no-workout for days" streak has been broken.

So, that was the "haven't done squat part!"
Now, on to the MUST DO SQUATS part...

Have you heard squats are one of the BEST moves you can do?  Yes, I've heard it for years but haven't really wanted to believe --  squats are, afterall, exhausting!  That is because they are a FULL body movement using legs, abs, back and arms. 


I love the 80's jazzercize leotard!

Here are a number of articles on PROPER squat technique (SO important!)  as well as the benefits of doing squats ... including the benefits to runners.  Squat on my friends!!!


Proper Technique


Can Lunges & Squats Make You Run Faster?


Lunges & Squats For Muscle


Strengthen Quads, Avoid Runners Knee


Squats Improve Running Technique


More on the muscular benefits of performing squats

Squat Science: The best exercise?





XOXOXO

~♥ Happy Valentine's Day ♥~

We had a heart-filled day at our house ...



Berry Crunch muffins ... uh, not sure what happened to them, weirdest lookin' muffins I've ever made ... but they taste great!




My 4th grader's class portrait Valentines ... got the idea HERE ... love how they turned out .. SO FUN!

 

Surprise goodies for my lil' Valentines -- new red threads and
$1 candy boxes, woohoo!




Heart-shaped mini pizzas for some cute little kindergarteners.




Rockin the juice box



A few festive touches for our dinner ... which included heart-shaped individual meat loaves (tried taking pics, but they didn't photograph well!!) 

Little Red Hots

A surprise from my sweetie ... a delicate little infinity ring I found on Pinterest ... it means so much!  

Something for the Mr. -- hoping he'll share! :)

We don't do big and fancy at our house ... but the adorable homemade cards our kids presented us with and the time together at our little Valentine dinner meant the world to me. 

I am blessed to have the what I have. 

Weekend Wrap-Up

I am SO happy to report that I had an AWESOME hill run.  Awesome in that it kicked my patoot and left me feeling exhausted but INVIGORATED.  I chased two boys (my male running buddies who are soooo much faster and stronger than I!) four miles up the hill and four FAST miles back down.  It was so hard ... I did have to stop and walk part of the way up (grrrr), but it was so motivating to try and keep up with those fellas.  It was a misty, cool morning and I almost backed out (another good reason to have a rudding buddy ... they keep you on track!) but they insisted on picking me up and so I was along for the run, like it or not.  Isn't it the best feeling when you are done?? I felt so accomplished!!!  

Going forward ... HILLS ... STEEP HILLS and MORE STEEP HILLS!!!  I'm still trying to get past the mental and physical road blocks that pop up everytime I attempt them ... but guess what kept popping into my head while I was running Saturday ...

I CAN DO HARD THINGS!! 

My new mantra for sure!

I also signed myself up for the Haulin Aspen half marathon in August!  **I can't wait.**  My brother and I are running the half while my mom (woot, woot ... go MOM!) and my oldest son run the 7-miler.  It is a GORGEOUS race in one of my favorite places on Earth ~ Bend, Oregon.  And we will have all the people I love dearly at the finish line waiting for us. Yippeeee!  My goals this year ... beat my 2010 time and BEAT MY BROTHER!  (haha, that last one will never happen!) 

My brother and I all giddy -n- happy at the
Haulin' Aspen 1/2 start line 2010

And then on Sunday I had the pleasure of seeing an amazing performance by Ballet Idaho with my own little ballerina.  We attended the afternoon performance of Firebird/Circus/Romeo & Juliet.  It was all Russian music and each mini-show was so unique and interesting. I was very impressed ... beautiful choreography and amazing scenery.  It was such a treat -- especially watching my own little girl mesmerized by the beauty of ballet.  Ahh ... I try hard not to get to sad over not pursuing my own dreams of being a dancer.  But that's a whole 'nother post!



All smiles before AND after the ballet!



It was a

GREAT WEEKEND. 

This week is chock-full of Valentine festivities and food!  More on that later! ♥ ♥ ♥

When you think about quitting ...

I had a decent run outside today.  Although, I started out SO MAD! Our cat decided to chew on my headphones while I was out dropping the kindergartener off.  She chewed clean through them ... my favorite, semi-expensive, hook-over-my-ears-cause-the-other-kind-never-stay-in-when-I-run headphones!  DARN IT!!!!  We've also had so much amazing sunshine lately that I was less than crazy about the dreery, gray skies that awaited me!  Nevertheless, I made do with an old pair of headphones (and ignored the irritating buzz in my left ear the whole time) and was pleased to discover the melancholy cloud-cover did make it much warmer.  My goal was to do over 7 miles today ... I was thrilled when I staggered home and discovered I had done 7.36 to be exact. 

Truth is ... I barely made it home. 

My knees get very soft on me when I don't run regularly and they really started to rebel the last two miles.  I had to push through it though!  As much as I wanted to quit, I knew if I stopped to walk they would immediately stiffen up and I'd be stuck walking the rest of the way home. 

I am very happy I was able to run 7 miles.  Afterall, a couple of weeks ago I would have been so proud of that run.  I am trying to focus on that positive and not spend too much time dwelling on
     1) my disappointing knees and
     2) the fact that I still have to be able to *easily* run
         twice that far uphill! 

Sometimes training get's overwhelming ... I see how many steps backward I've made ... or how many leaps I still have yet to take.  *Trying* NOT to get discouraged. :)

Turn It UP Tuesday!

Love to run to both of these songs ... just now realizing they both have an early 90's, Erasure-ish feel!

Don't Be A Chicken!

Unseasonably warm temps, lot's of time outside, a brand-new workout, overnight trip with Grandma for the kiddos (score!) and date night with the hubby & friends ... yep that pretty much sums up my awesome weekend!  I didn't do ANY running.  Oh well, you win some, you lose some!  It was a perfect weekend.

On Saturday, I attended a CrossFit workout with a couple of friends who've been asking me to go for awhile.  It has been some time since I've done any serious strength workouts, so to put it bluntly, I was really scared of sucking it up.  No one likes to look like a weakling, right?  Plus, for me it's always scary to go outside the box and try something I've never done before.  I have made an effort to be more adventureous in recent years however.  Even taking up running was a new endeavor for me.  I was never a super-athletic person in school.  I danced, but never played any sports.  When I started running I was pretty sure I'd never be able to run more than a couple times around the block ... at best!  Now, I'm no marathoner or anything, but I can run a decent distance and I truly enjoying running.  If I'd never tried ... I never would have known.

Last year, I went to a Bikram (or Hot) yoga class all by myself.  I knew no one.  I'd never even taken one yoga class.  I was pretty darn scared.  But I got through it and I felt so accomplished afterward.  I wish I could say I was still doing it ... but scheduling, etc. hasn't been on my side.  I would like to go back though.  I will go back!  And I'll probably start from scratch all over again!

A couple of years ago when I started regularly going to a gym it was a very intimidating experience.  I wanted to get serious about lifting but had NO IDEA where to start.  Luckily, I have an in-house expert (the hubby) who got me started and showed me the basics.  But still, it took me a little while to feel confident, to try new things and not allow myself to be intimidated.  I can honestly say, I quickly became addicted to the invigorating feeling strength training gives you ... what fun it is to challenge yourself and see your weekly and monthly progress.  

Now, my track record isn't perfect ... I tend to go great-guns for awhile with something and then kind of slow down ... and eventually the slacker in me rears its ugly head and I find I'm doing a whole lotta excuse making for my laziness.  My strength training has essentially gone down the tubes the last 8 months or so (yeah, that's a long time!) and I am itching to get that STRONG feeling back.

Enter CrossFit.  So, I made the commitment to try it out.  First with friends -- and it was brutal, but I made it through!  And then today ... all by myself!  Again, fear and anxiety reared it's familiar head ... I'm pretty sure I came up with a hundred excuses between the hours of 8 and 9 am ...

• I'm still SO SORE from Saturday (which is no joke, wowza!)
• The timing is hard due to kindergarten drop-off after 9 a.m. and class starting 10+minutes away at 9:15 (I hate sliding in at the last minute!)
• I haven't run in days and really should get some miles in.
• I'm still SO SORE
• I don't know the mechanics of the workouts yet, I'll feel silly asking so many questions
• The puppy would rather me stay home and walk her (haha, yep even crossed my mind!)
• I'd have to really hurry, suck down a quick breakfast, and pop some aspirin or I'd never even be able to get my arms high enough to put my sports bra on!
• Did I mention how every muscle in my body is so sore?

BUT:  I found the courage, which sometimes is very hard to do and I just went for it.

• 9:02 Dropped kindergartner off, sprinted to the car like a goofball
• 9:11 Entered CrossFit Station
• 9:20 Finished a quick warm up and had such fun, I repeat, SUCH FUN pushing myself through the Workout of the Day (or WOD.) 
• 9:40 Mustered up some additional bravery and stayed to learn new lifts for the Strength workout of the day.  (I used dumbbells and machines at the gym, but I'm not used to barbells and Olympic lifts, so this was pretty much all new to me!)
• 10:15 Drove home, soreness compounded, smile on my face, and a definite sense of accomplishment!  
• I was brave!

Moral of the story ... DON'T BE A CHICKEN!  I know it's hard to put yourself out there.  But you never know until you try.  And you could be missing out on something that you will love.  Life is for LIVING!

I might need THIS necklace.

Oh, and I made myself a super-quick healthy breakfast when I returned from my workout ... whole grain toast topped with egg whites, steamed spinach, melted sharp cheddar cheese, sliced tomatoes and a little salt & pepper.  YUMM! 

Easy Peasy!

Milestones that make you laugh ... then cry!

My youngest lost his first tooth yesterday!  He was so brave, let me pull and twist it every which way and finally pinch the dangling thing out.  He is obsessed with money right now and was thrilled that the Tooth Fairy *paid* him a visit last night.  He woke up bright and early to count his "bucks" and add them to his stash.  He looks adorable with his missing tooth, and so grown up.  All our kids are growing their big kid teeth now ... this was the last full mouth of baby teeth we will see around our household.  And so it goes ...

He is a pretty good egg ... most of the time!

Head for the hills!



Girls day on the trails.



We had some free time this morning so I packed Zoe up in the car and headed for the hills!  After a warm, spring-like day yesterday I was itching to get out on the trails with the puppy and take in some fresh air.  Much to my dismay, the weather called for rain and possibly snow this morning, so we had to get there quick!  We were able to get a good hour in on the foothill trails ... cold, but beautiful!  It was snowing above us in the mountains, the views were invigorating, the trails were nearly empty, and Zoe and I were able to practice a little running and hiking together.  She did AWESOME!  She's going to make a great running partner someday ... for now, brief runs, and blazing up steep trails together is great fun for both of us. (And let's be honest, this lil' pup NEEDS to be worn out!)  She's a pro at sticking by my side off-leash, we just need to work on *calmly* greeting other dogs! 

I l♥ve my dog because she forces encourages me to be outdoors.

How'd we get so far up here?



Snowing in the hills ... gonna be up there running in just a couple of months. 



Nose to the camera!

LOVING the fresh air

Those are some mighty long legs!

Lil' miss floppy ears





Made it back to the car just in time!


** Edited to add:

I l♥ve my cat too ... she is sweet, quiet, mellow and an excellent "mouser!" She encourages me to CHILL. :)

Miss Penny ... Champion mouser!