Daily Happenings 4-27-14

For someone that doesn't like to cook I sure was in the kitchen a good 80% of the day. Cooking and cleaning and cooking again...and cleaning. That includes making my sons baby food. Of course, my baby eats clean as much as his mommy does as well. :) 

In this pic the kale is drying in preparation to be roasted for kale chips. This was my first time attempting kale chips after seeing them for years. I've used kale in my smoothies and in my juices and I actually DONT like it. It taste too spicy. Now as chips they get a thumbs up. I did add too much kosher salt (I am out of sea salt) and probably a little to much olive oil, but they were still good. I liked the crunchiness of it. It's true what they say, you won't miss potato chips with this substitute. 

Oh I also drank a green juice with my lunch.

I had plans to run at least 2-3 miles today. That didn't happen for reasons that shall remain unnamed. But I did take it to the garage and do a high intensity interval workout using the gym boss timer app.

I did 24 rounds of speed jump roping, mountain climbers, jumping jacks, planks, push-ups, and bicycle crunches. I definitely need a new heart rate monitor watch (old one broke) because I would love to see how many calories I burned.

Well, tomorrow I'm trying to make it to the gym after my family's gathering which of course we will be eating. I'm on mission so I hope to report no weak moments. :)

Tiffany

Loop After Loop

I finally found a really good park in my area! It has everything, even a walking trail around the perimeter of the park. I decided to take Mr. AJ and his jogger out for my first day using the Couch to 10k app.

I decided on c10k to get ready for the Peachtree may also use the trainer that comes with the Nike+ app) because an interval program would help me endure treadmill running on days I cannot run outdoors. Then I figured it wouldn't hurt to use it for more motivation while running with the jogger either. Running with the jogger gives you an UPPER and lower workout I think. Annnnnnd, I do want a decent time, so there you have my top 3 reasons. 

If you've looked around my blog you know that I used the Couch to 5k app when I first started running in 2011. I'll definitely be reviewing this app once I complete it. Also note that I started on Week 4, Day 1 since I'm not exactly a beginner.

This was my first time at this park so I opted for the track. I think one time around is 1/2 a mile. I could be wrong. So I did 4 miles of slow walk/run intervals. The app helped so much. Usually I'm constantly checking my distance. 4 miles of loops and loops period just sounds crazy.

Felt good not to have to wait for someone to get home or for someone to fall asleep before I could workout. I came home and made this salad and reheated a sweet potato I cooked the other night. I'll be back...for the loops and all. :-)

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?