Holy planks

Ouch, my upper body and core muscles are sore today!

Everything I ate yesterday held me over rather well. Even the smoothie from the morning; I was worried that because I didn’t have any grains I would be hungry by 8:00 but no such thing happened. It doesn’t hurt that I drink coffee and chug water when I get to work 😉

Lunch was surprisingly good and that beautifulness that is Fage 2% w/ Cherry held me over well through the afternoon, a workout, and until dinner which was almost 5 hours!

Workout

I have been doing a lot of thinking lately. I’m not sure why I think of this as a “bummer” or a “bad thing” but I don’t think I’m cut out for the long distance running, at least not if I can’t commit to a serious training schedule. Last year, I was a beast. I followed the training to a T and did the races almost effortlessly; but then I burned out. I’ve done ok this year, but I struggled at the end of the 10-miler, doing lots of walking, and I know next weekends mini-marathon is going to be a challenge as well. So I’m thinking about walking the whole thing. What do you guys think?

For some perspective, my outdoor workout included a one hour walk. I walk pretty fast normally, so I estimate I kept a good 15-minute mile pace (or 4.0 mph). I expected to be disappointed and not even feel like I worked out, but that was so not the case. I should remember, was not long ago that I was walking every day, that’s one of the things that helped me lose over 70 lbs (in addition to healthy eating)! I was breathing harder than I would on a stroll, I sweated (not as much as with running), and my legs are still sore today, just not as much as they would have been. And I chose a route that included some inclines, so that was challenging too. Plus it was just so nice to be out in the warm sunshine, taking in the sights and not overexerting myself.

So I think my walk was a success. And I don’t think there is anything wrong with changing my routine to short distance running and long distance walking. I’m totally a 5k runner and I did enjoy the challenge of the 10k, but the longer distances are/were not my friend this year. We’ll see, I’ll keep you all posted for sure 🙂

After my walk, I went back to the gym for some good stretching; I’ve been incorporating yoga poses into my routine which has really helped my calves and hips (down dog and pigeon). Now that the races are winding down, I so want to get back into yoga classes. I really miss how yoga makes me feel. So that’s on the to do list.

I also did something inspired by Angela, planks and side planks, oh boy! I started off in regular plank holding for 1 minute. This alone was a miracle because I used to shake and curse through 30 seconds, so being able to do it for a minute without complaining was inspiring to me. Now the side planks (with one arm) I could only hold for 30 seconds each. I rotated from side to side, doing each of the three planks twice. That’s why my arms and core are sore today! 😉

For dinner, my husband cooked some chicken on the grill (marinated in buffalo sauce!) and I had a sweet potato with whipped butter and cinnamon and a slice of flax toast with butter as my sides.

For dessert, two more great pieces of advice (one said “Happiness is Contagious” I remember that!). My dad calls dark chocolate his “blood pressure medication” (rolls eyes)…

The husband and I watched “Role Models” which was pretty cute but definitely for adults only; we’re big KISS fans, so if you’ve seen the flick, you can imagine what parts we enjoyed the most 🙂 I really enjoy Paul Rudd, always have. I’ve had “Love Gun” stuck in my head since last night, going on 12 hours now, hahaha. At our wedding, my husband and I danced our first dance to “Forever” by KISS. Our future children are going to be so embarrassed by us 😉

During the flick, I got a little snacky…guess that walk was more powerful than I thought, so I had a cup of Multigrain Cheerios and some tea.

Then, I guess this was sort of an experiment, but I had a second cup with a spoonful of Nutella…

I guess this addiction has been broken without me knowing it?! This stuff used to not last a week in my house and now I’ve only had two spoonfuls in almost a week! And last night when I ate this, I actually said to myself “This tastes too sweet!” Hahaha. I guess cutting out the CRAP really did away with some cravings after all. Nutella is not (really) crap, although the first ingredient is sugar. There are healthier alternatives out there too, but its not too bad to have in moderation.

I think I will reserve the rest of it for recipes or if I get a nice loaf of french bread one day, ooh or some croissants? 🙂

Happy Friday, yay, we made it!!