Yay For Rest Days!

I decided against waking up early for the shred and slept in an extra 30 minutes. It was exactly what I needed. After working out for four days straight and doing some pretty intense workouts I decided my body needed a break. Although my muscles aren’t too sore I’m sure they appreciate it. I’m contemplating on waking up tomorrow for the shred and then going to Crossfit after work but I’m not sure yet if I’m going to do both. I’ve heard that level 2 is harder than level 1 so I’m ready for the harder aspects that level 2 will bring. Since I didn’t take any pictures of food today (it’s hard to remember!) I’ll leave you a picture of the fur beast as a pup, I can’t believe he’s turning 4 this year! He grew up way too fast.

Monday Rambles

Hey there! Today has been a quiet day. We got an unexpected snow fall last night that resulted in quite a bit of snow and my brother ended up having his exam cancelled. This morning I woke up pretty hungry and was going to a Crossfit class at 10 so I wanted something filling but wouldn't weigh me down. French toast it was!

 

I took two slices of Udi's Gluten Free Millet/Chia Bread  and dunked it in a cinnamon, vanilla and egg white bath. I cooked them in some coconut oil and they were delicious! I slathered on a bit of peanut butter and of course had to have my banana and peanut butter on the side :). I prefer to dip my french toast into the maple syrup so I have some with each bite. I probably only used half of what you see there. That's pure maple syrup, we only use the Canadian best in my house.

After I walked to my Crossbit box since I couldn't get a ride. Let's say that the next hardest thing to running in snow is walking in it. My calves were burning and I was sweating before I even got there.

When I got to the box there was the earlier class finishing up the WOD, and they were totally beat. I was nervous to what I was getting my self into but told myself I would do the best I could. After warming up we did the buy in:

EMOM for 6 minutes 3 reps of front squats.

I started with 10lbs on my bar but it was pretty easy so near the end I switched to 15lbs and it definitely made it tougher but I was still capable of doing the squats. And then the WOD.

20 Wall Balls, 15 Pull-Ups, 15 Ring Dips (Push-ups for me!)

20 Wall Balls, 12 Pull-Ups, 12 Ring Dips

20 Wall Balls, 9 Pull-Ups, 9 Ring Dips

20 Wall Balls, 6 Pull-Ups, 6 Ring Dips

20 Wall Balls, 3 Pull-Ups, 3 Ring Dips

I do a less intense Crossfit class so this was scaled down from the regular class but it was just as tough. I used a blue band for the pull-ups (the thickest there was) and a 8lb ball for the wall balls. I finished in 15:45 and was dripping sweat by the end. After Crossfit I snacked on an apple, kind bar and some almonds. The corn muffins I had with my lunch. I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread Mix. I like to top them with raspberry jam, yum.

Pomegranate, Blueberry, Pistachio - My favorite!

I was so tired when I got home I just wanted to take a nap. Whenever I do an intense workout I always want to take a nap, anyone know why?

The rest of the day has been spent eating, sleeping (I did take a nap) and some grocery shopping. Now I'm sitting on the couch relaxing before I tackle three straight days of work. I'm going to wake up early tomorrow to do Level 2 of the 30 day shred. Wish me luck!

Sunday Runday

It felt good to be back pounding the pavement again. I decided to save my $15 for the gym and ran outside. It was absolutely gorgeous today. Sunny and warm for a January day. I wore capris, a lightweight jacket, a long sleeved shirt and then a shirt sleeved shirt underneath. A mile into my run and I took my coat off! I felt great. My average pace was 9:02min/miles for the eight miles I ran. The last mile was more of a cool down and I was planning on walking the rest of the way but decided to do a light jog until I reached eight. Something I realized today, running on snow is hard! Your feet kind of slip and can't grip the snow and my pace really slowed down on those parts.There was only snow for a bit but other than that the sidewalks were pretty clear. I can't wait until it warms up and I can get outside more, I'm a big chicken when it's really cold outside. That's why I signed up for Crossfit :).

Before my run I ate lunch of black bean burgers, carrots and broccoli and a corn muffin. This morning I made pumpkin pancakes and they were sooo good! Love pumpkin pancakes.With of course peanut butter and banana. Now that I've run those eight miles I think some frozen yogurt is in order, I have a groupon and I've been craving some for a while. Need that fuel for Crossfit tomorrow!

Here's what I'm planning for workouts this week:

M: Crossfit
T: 30 Day Shred (Level 2 Maybe)
W: Run or Crossfit
Th: 30 Day Shred
F: Rest
S: Crossfit
S: Rest

Since I've started Crossfit I haven't been doing the shred. My upper body has been sore the past two days and yesterday when I tried to do push-ups I couldn't do it, it was after Crossfit so probably not the smartest thing to do. I want to continue to do it on the mornings I work though. Okay, I think I'm going to get some fro-yo, later!

Another Day, Another Crossfit Class

Another class completed! Since I bought a unlimited pass for Crossfit I'm trying to get in as many classes as my life and body will allow me. I woke up a bit sore in my arms and shoulders but after looking at the WOD last night for today it didn't look too bad. I was a bit nervous going into today's WOD because it was done in groups of three. Luckily I was placed in a group with two other woman who were very friendly and helpful. Today's WOD was this:

With one person working as a team complete as many rounds as possible in 15 minutes.

• 200m row
• 10 front squats
• 10 toes to bar
• 1 rope climb
• 10 dumbbell thrusters

 In my group we split up the each exercise. For example, I would do 5 front squats and then someone else would complete the other 5. Mine was slightly modified. Instead of toes to bar I lifted my knees as high as I could, although I feel like I could do the toes to bar, or at least halfway. But that's probably just how I see it in my mind ;). And instead of the rope climb I started on the ground and pulled myself up with my arms while maintaining my body in plank position and lowering myself down again. That was hard but I did it! One of my goals in crossfit is definitely to climb that rope. I will do it!

I was going to do the 30 day shred but my arms couldn't even do a push up so I decided that I'd do it tomorrow, maybe start level 2. I'm also going to go to the gym tomorrow and run 4-5 miles. I'm thinking of doing some intervals, I haven't run in a week and am really itching to get my legs moving!

One of my fitness goals is to climb a rope in crossfit and run another half-marathon this year, what are some of yours?

Hooked

It's official, I love Crossfit. I went to my second class at my box and it went great. I was a bit nervous going as I feel a bit out of my element, but once I start going it fades away. There were seven other people that showed up today and I liked the smaller class. The instructor that taught my first class was the instructor today and helped me throughout the hour.

We started with a buy in push press. We did four reps on the minute every minute for 6 minutes at 75% of 1 rep max. Honestly I don't know what that means but basically we chose a weight that was challenging but still doable for the push press and it four times every minute for six minutes. And rested after we had completed the four. I was using a 15lb bar with 15lbs on each side. I did pretty well and I think next time I can go higher. 

Then we got ready for the WOD (aka workout of the day). Today's WOD was:

12 Overhead Squats
9 Ring Dips
6 Box Jumps

4 rounds, after the four rounds finish with 50 sit-ups.

However, as I am a weakling and couldn't even hold myself up on the rings my WOD was modified to this:

12 Overhead Squats
12 Push-Ups (on knees, still challenging though!)
6 Box Jumps

For the push-ups I thought it was just down and up, but in Crossfit your chest has to go all the way down. Yeah, that wasn't happening. So he told me to go on my knees and move my arms closer together. That was just as challenging and I definitely felt it.

Another thing I found out, I hate overhead squats. Every time I would squat down the bar doesn't stay straight and comes over my head. It's hard for me to keep my arms straight and the bar high. 

Image Source, What I should look like.

A thing I have to work on I guess. Also I put 5lbs on each side of th 15lb bar, on my second round I took them off. Way to hard. Right now I just need to get my form down on these things and then start adding weight.

I finished the WOD in 10:45. Everyone was really encouraging and told me to keep going. I didn't care I was the last one done. I did it the best I could and I know that's a number I can work on in the future to get down. 

In case anyone is interested. I bought the unlimited monthly classes for $190 (including tax). I thought it was pretty good because I like to do both strength and cardio. A spinning studio near my house has spinning classes for $130 and bodypump classes for $190! So with Crossfit I get the best of both worlds for a lot cheaper. This is a start of a beautiful thing :).

Need To Find A Race!

I've been itching to race. The thrill of standing at the start line, a bib pinned to your chest, tracker on your shoe and hundreds of people surrounding you who are just as addicted to running as you are. The last race I ran was the Oakville 5k Santa Shuffle (where I achieved a PR!). Even though I've only run five races so far, I'm hoping to do three-five this year. A half-marathon, 10k, 15k and maybe a few 5k's. Something that is close and not to costly. I was thinking of doing a half-marathon in March but I'm not sure that's going to happen. It's freezing outside (-24 with the windchill, no thanks) and when it snows it takes forever to leave. I'm following my previous half-marathon training plan and was supposed to do a five mile, four mile and eight mile run. Haven't ran since Sundays seven miler. This is what my workout plan for the rest of the week is:

Friday: 30 day shred. Crossfit
Saturday: Crossfit (depending how sore I am), 30 day shred
Sunday: 4-5 mile run at the gym, 30 day shred

As you can see I'm doing Jillian Micheal's 30 Day Shred. I've been doing it for a week now and I can say I have seen improvements. Not body wise yet but in Level one many of the moves are easier. I can do more push-ups and do the side lunge/lateral raise combo continuously. That moved killed me every time but yesterday and today I did it without taking a break! It definitely feels easier. I ordered it off of Amazon and with tax and shipping it came to $10! Not too shabby. I really like it so far and am excited to get into the harder levels.

Wow, two posts in less than an hour! I've got the blogging bug right now and just want to keep writing. I've been reading blogs for about a year now, maybe two and can really see why a blog is a great idea. In a way I find it therapeutic and can really share whats on my mind. I'm a fan of the blog world!

Changing

Good evening! Theres some things I need to get off my chest so I'm just going to start with them.

When I first started training for my half-marathon I was the smallest I have ever been. I fit into all of my size 6 shorts, my size lululemon shirt was a bit big and I felt great about myself, especially since I was back to running. But as I got further into my training and the miles increased, so did my appetite. The mentality to eat what I want because I just ran 10 miles became the norm. I started eating late at night, ate gluten filled carbs (which didn't agree with me but they were so good I put that aside) and slowly the pounds added up. Even though going into the race I had gained some weight I still managed a sub 2:00hr race which I am beyond proud of.

But now that my running hasn't been as intense, the weight is still there. My pants that used to be loose are now tight and uncomfortable. I feel like the big girl again and I don't like it. It's been hard to go back to my strict eating habits, but I'm slowly making an effort. Yes it's hard that it's winter and it feels like -24 outside, the only thing I feel like doing is Jillian Michael's 30 day shred and taking Kona for a walk (which is what I did today!). I know once the weather warms up I'll start running more and the weight will come off, but I also need to realize that what I eat is just as important.

I really just needed to share this. I've probably gained around 10 pounds and just want them gone. I know with will power and determination I can do it. I'm also signing up for Crossfit tomorrow (eek!). I did a trial class awhile ago and loved it, although I felt like I was going to throw up I felt awesome after. I really love strength training as it really increases my metabolism. And combine that with cardio and you got one hell of a workout. I know with Crossfit I'll tone up, lose the weight and become a stronger person. Which will translate into a better runner. I'm going to my second class tomorrow, so wish me luck!

Hey!

Hello! It's been quite a long time. Between birthdays, Christmas and New  Years things got pretty busy. And I did think about blogging but I just didn't feel like it. However, it being the New Year and all I've made blogging more frequently one of my goals. Goal, not a resolution. I like the word goal better than resolution. I feel like goals are something that I can accomplish, while a resolution is more of a lifestyle choice or change and if you don't succeed at that resolution you feel like a failure or a disappointment. That's my view on it anyway. I think it's great regardless to make goals for the new year, and than when that year ends you get to review what you did accomplish. My goals for the new year are:

• Run another half-marathon
• Blog more often
• Get into the school of my dreams
• Become more lean and build muscle
• Join Crossfit
• Build my core strength
• Do more volunteer work
• Keep my room clean (failed at it last year)

So that's it for now! I really hope to do well in all of these and I'll sure keep you updated.

I'm watching the golden globes so I'll see you tomorrow, later!