New Month, New Challenges

It's time for new goals and new perspectives. Make the last part of the the year even better. Remember those 2015 goals we made last December?

Today was pretty uneventful. Just the way my introverted self likes it. I did go to the gym this morning and joined a cycle class. It's been over a year since my last class. I did so much better than I thought and I can't believe I stayed on beat and with the instructor about 95% of the time, ha ha. I guess it helped that this class seemed somewhat on the beginner's level. I want to continue going. It IS a good exercise for runners. I also feel like my weight has plateaued so it's definitely time to break it up. My body is used to running and I don't burn as many calories as I used to from it.

I stopped by Walmart on the way home for some snacks for my upcoming road trip. Among the items I bought was more Greek yogurt for my smoothies and for this new healthy toddler treat idea I saw on Pinterest, yogurt drops. They're hardening in the fridge as I type, so I'll have to report on how this different texture tastes to me and most importantly to my son. He's the pickiest eater ever.

Good to the last drop. Ingredients were: berries, banana, & vanilla Greek yogurt

On to the next! If you follow me on Instagram, you may of seen that I joined a challenge calling "Jumping Into June Challenge". We were to jump rope a certain number throughout the week. It was going well for me the first couple days as far as completing the reps, but on my runs that followed, I experienced fatigued legs and what I hate most of all...SHIN splints! So yeah, that challenged ended in less than two weeks for me.

Checking through my e-mail today, I noticed FitFluential started a new challenge for this month called the July FitFluential Challenge (search hashtags #FF100 & #FFChallenge for motivation). There's a calendar with one type of exercise for every day in July that you should complete 100 reps. I think that's doable, right?  I'll incorporate this with whatever other workouts I decide to do even after Saturdays 10 k.

Check it out! Maybe you can join me.

So as I mentioned above, today was pretty uneventful. There was rain in the forecast, which meant I didn't want to risk taking the boy anywhere and getting caught in it trying to hold him and an umbrella...again #disaster. So I decided this was the perfect time to get half way through packing for our upcoming trip. It. took. forever with this little one throwing my shoes everywhere, re-wrinkling clothes I'd already ironed... ugh. I finally finished after about 2 1/2 hours and a lunch break.

Did I mention how much I love summer break? At home with so many options, getting so many things done. No? Well I do! I have about 4 more weeks to go and I'm so trying not to think about it. Life is about to get real hectic around here plus grad school, too. Lord help me.

What did you do today? What are your goals for part 2 of this year?

A New Chapter: No Longer a SAHM

Well, although it hasn't been that long since my last post, so much has changed within the last 9 days.  I started a full-time teaching job, which means my son is now attending daycare full-time. All of that before the weekend we spent out of town, which means I fell off of Week 2 of the 4 Week Shape Up Plan easily. And to top it off, last week was stressful in it self because of a few unexpected things and to top it off, today is day 1 of my half marathon training. Everyone's excited except me. Everyone meaning my husband; probably because this is his first.

I'll back up. On the last post I was headed out of town to visit the in-laws and had packed all of these healthy treats. I did great eating-wise for the most part while out of town until the following Friday. Eating bad, plus no previous good workouts equals no bueno. All I did last week was 4-miles of speed training on the treadmill and a sorry attempt (in my opinion) at a leg and shoulder workout.

So here it is Day 1 of my 12-week half marathon training plan and I'm not very motivated because I feel like crap physically. I wanted to spend time between now and my last race building strength, but I fell off in the last week and a half. It doesn't sound that bad as I type this out, but I was on a roll for a minute to let one week stop me sucks.

When I tell you I went IN with the eating yesterday in honor of it being my "last" day to go overboard on indulgences, I went IN. I'm talking Krispy Kreme DoughnutS after church, oatmeal cookies at home, juice, and one of my favorite fried chicken spots...POPEYES. I feel so sluggish because of it, too.

Fortunately the hubs and I reactivated our mighty team work powers (lol) and planned our week out. He cooked the meals and I prepped me and the baby's clothes for the week. The only thing we may have to fix is our breakfasts and that will most likely be overnight oats.

Planning will definitely be KEY! 

The past few days and upcoming weeks are filled with major 'firsts'. My first time being a full-time working mom and first time training for a half marathon as a mom. 

My training plan only calls for 2 runs and 2 cross-training days during the week. I think this is doable. There are a few trails between my home and work so I've already started planning. I get off work kind of early, so I'll have to determine if the weather is too hot for my son to tag a long with me.

For my long runs, I have my husband, a friend, and we all have a few running groups we can join on Saturday mornings for extra motivation. Honestly, I do not want to run with a stroller unless I have to. So I'll be summoning my wonderful family members to babysit for long run days once I get up to 6 miles, maybe?

My dinner tonight was this smoothie. Let me tell you. I sat in the sauna this evening after my body works class and I started to feel sick...like the donuts were re-cooking in my stomach. Bleh! I couldn't eat anything solid if I tried. This will suffice. I'm hoping for a good first week. This journey will be interesting.

Do you have any fall fitness goals? How do you fit family and training for a major race in?

Update: Health & Fitness Apps I Use Daily

I thought I'd give an update on the health & fitness apps I currently use. I think I'm on my third smartphone since starting this blog in 2011, so I've gone through my share of apps. Some apps have made it through to the new phones, and others didn't.

Nike+ GPS Running app - allows me to track my distance, time, and pace while running. I also have the watch. Depending on the situation, I will use one or the other. For shorter runs I've been using the app just so I don't have to wait until I get home to upload my run to the computer to see my splits. Sometimes I don't want to hear the voice prompts (and don't want to change the settings each time) during my runs, so I'll use my watch. For races, I use my watch...just looks cooler, lol.

Lose It! app - I use to use this app religiously. This is what I used to lose weight. See a full review here. Now I use it on occasion. Like when I want to measure my protein intake...or to see if I've eaten enough calories since I'm breastfeeding. Sometimes my appetite isn't up, but I HAVE to eat a certain amount in order to keep my milk supply up for my son. I also use it to track my weight. I like visuals.

MapMyWalk - It's simple. I use it when I'm walking...usually with my friends or family who aren't runners. And because I'm a "running snob" and have diagnosed myself with OCD, I don't want to mess up my overall pace record on my Nike app. :-)

Gymboss - I use this app when I do HIIT workouts at home or when I'm doing a jump rope Tabata workout in my garage.

Nike Training Club  - I use this as a cross training go-to. The workouts are really good. I followed a program earlier in the year when I was trying to get ready for my first race postpartum. It whipped me good! Plus now it syncs with the Nike+ running app.

LA Fitness - Welp, that's my gym. I use the app to refer to the class schedules.

Run 10K -  I was going to use this app to get ready for my upcoming 10K, but... I fell off and started following another training plan I liked better. I may restart it just for run to make sure I'm keeping up with running period after my race in two weeks. I digress, but after this race, I plan to really focus on cross-training more and less running, just to get stronger before I start training for any Fall half marathons I'm thinking about doing. Plus, running in the heat isn't fun. 

KP - KP? Well, that's Kaiser Permanente, my health insurance provider. I really could of omitted for the purposes of this post. :)

Sworkit - is another app I use for cross-training. It allows you to choose a workout based on your goals, whether you want to do cardio, yoga, or strength training. You choose the length of time you want to workout and it customizes a workout for the day for you.

This post reminds me of an old post I wrote about setting and sticking with your goals and how certain apps helped me in doing so. I also mentioned in that post how I like structure and plans in order to help me stick with it. I wrote that three years ago...there's a lot about me that's changed since then. For instance, I LIKE working out with the group and have gotten more comfortable going to the gym. 

But anyhoo, what health & fitness apps do you use? I'm always open to something new. If you've written a blog post, link it below please. :-)

-Tiffany

Peachtree Road Race Training Begins!

I haven't posted in a while, but I have ran one race since giving birth to my son in October 2013. That was the Hot Chocolate 5k in January. My time was great considering majority of my running had to be on the treadmill. I think I ran an 11:30 pace? And every runner who's ever run in downtown Atlanta knows about those hills, so that pace was pretty good for me post-baby.

Well, the opportunity has finally come to run my first Peachtree Road Race. I remember back in the day, I used to volunteer for this race and I didn't even know what a 10k was. I've only run one 10k in my running life and actually don't prefer the distance for a race, but I want to participate in this one, just because it is an Atlanta tradition. I haven't decided whether or not I will set a time goal, but I do want to finish strong, for me meaning run the whole time.

Although my running has been slighted since that January race, I have worked out every week since. I honestly thought I could go back to working out as normal even with my son, but that just isn't possible without a babysitter readily available, not to mention I'm still breastfeeding (6 months strong, woot!). So my workouts have been mixed. I do T25, Jillian Michael's Hard Body, the elliptical, tabata workouts with my my jump rope and Nike Training Club app. As you may be able to tell, I need programs that will keep my attention.

I'm about 3lbs away from my pre-preggo weight, but I really want my endurance (jump roping helps) and I want to lose another 10lbs after I reach pre-preggo weight. Sometimes I log my workouts, runs, and foods I eat on Instagram (@seetiffrun).

As far as diet, I'm still eating as little processed foods as possible, but this go round, I've amped up my protein intake. I can't take artificial protein supplements while I am breastfeeding, but I am focusing more on foods naturally higher in protein.

So, so far so good with me. Mentally I am there, but schedule conflicts regarding the baby don't always allow me to physically do what I want. I am still learning that sometimes I just can't do it all and that's okay. That realization came when I had to forfeit doing the Chic-fil-A half marathon last month. I just couldn't get out to train consistently. Thank God I hadn't registered for the race yet. I'm counting on the fact that 6.2 miles isn't as bad and if anything it will turn into a fun run, since I will have to fight the heat, hills, and humidity in the largest 10k in the nation on the fourth of July.

How is your fitness journey, especially if you have kids?