Project: Muffin Top Reduction - Week 2

It's been two weeks, so here we go....

What went well:

• Waist measurement went down
• Normally I would have had out of control cravings, and while they were still there they were a lot more manageable
• This would also normally be the week I'd see my weight go up by a couple pounds - very happy to see it stay almost the same

What didn't go well:

• I did indulge a little bit more than I would have liked to at the training sessions I was attending (they had snacks!)
• My runs didn't go as well as I would have liked - too many extra breaks

What I'm going to do differently:

• Focus on my mental state while running - pushing through the "this is hard, and would be easier if I took a break" thoughts
• Plan my meals and snack options for the next two weeks, and do my best to eat lots of veggies when I'm at my parent's for Easter

Foam Rolling

The other week, when I had major Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), I used the foam rollers at the gym every time I was there.  I try to do this anyway, but it's more of a challenge when your muscles are already super sore and you're squashing them against a roller.  More than once I was grimacing, and holding my breath counting the moments until it was over.

So why do it?  Why put myself through that pain and agony?  Simple - if I foam roll on a regular basis the pain and agony goes away and it actually becomes relaxing (in a way).

Since I've read a lot about it, and viewed tons of videos on how to do it, I thought I would capture some of the benefits here.  In the hopes that this will help me get back to doing it on a regular basis, and to the point where it's no longer as painful.

The benefits of foam rolling include (source):

• Improved blood circulation (through skin, fascia, muscles, tendons, and ligaments)
• More efficient exchange of nutrients and waste products (as a result of the improved circulation)
• Lengthening of short (tight) muscles, ligaments and tendons (particularly good for those muscles that are hard to stretch)
• Optimize spine range of motion (as a result of rolling your spine over the roller and focusing on tight areas)

A simple search on-line will result in tons of videos to show how to use the roller for various body parts.  I generally use it for my quads, inner thighs, IT band, calves, and back (mainly my lats).  I find that usually my quads are the sorest, although at the moment it's my IT band as well as my quads.  If nothing else the foam roller helps me stretch my IT band, which I have a very hard time stretching otherwise, and my inner thighs (as they are really tight and it's making it hard to do some exercises like side lunges).

Workouts Last Week

I'm still having slight issues with my legs, but it's odd.  When I stretch nothing feels "bad", but when I walk or run on the treadmill or try to do squats and lunges I can tell something isn't right.  I'm just not able to figure out exactly what the issue is with which muscle.

However, I've been doing lots of reading (my running book and on-line) and everything indicates that as long as it isn't too bad and I'm not feeling it while walking I should be okay to keep up with my running.  With that in mind...my workouts last week:

Monday - Run 5 minutes, Walk 1 minute x3, Run 2 minutes, Walk 1 minute x1.  Followed by upper body weights, which felt better than the week before I the muscle soreness didn't last nearly as long.  The run was actually pretty tough, but I felt happy that I finished it.  I made sure to spend a lot of time stretching out and foam rolling.

Tuesday - Rest

Wednesday - Same run workout as Monday, but it felt much better.  Leg was still sore during it (a tiny bit), but the run iteself was boarderline fun.  I managed to do squats after the run, but as soon as I started lunges I could tell there was something too tight/wrong with my right innner thigh.  Rather than continue with the lunges I stopped and spent time stretching everything out and foam rolling.  This is when I figured out that I wasn't able to replicate the pain with the stretching (not that I really want to be in pain, but I want to be able to pinpoint the issue).

Thursday and Friday - Rest

Saturday - Same run workout as Monday and Wednesday and it went well.  I've really figured out that I need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable and a lot of this is pushing myself mentally.

The plan for this week - Monday, Wednesday, Friday running.  Do a bit of yoga at home on the off days to assist with the stretching.  I'm going to put the weight workouts on hold for this week in the hopes that this will give my muscles a chance to recover.

Workouts last week

This past week was not stellar when it came to my workouts.  I had great intentions at the beginning of the week, and my plan consisted of:

Monday - Run (4 minutes running, 1 minute walk x4), Weights (upper body)

Wednesday - Run (4 minutes running, 1 minute walk x4), Weights (lower body)

Friday - Run (4 minutes running, 1 minute walk x4), Weights (upper body)

Here's what actually happened:

Monday - Run (4 minutes running, 1 minute walk x4), Weights (upper body) - Run was a lot harder than expected, since I didn't think that sking, snowshoing and walking through the snow on the weekend had tired out my legs that much.  Upper body went well, but I used really heavy weights and since it was my first time doing weights in about two weeks that wasn't the wisest choice.  My chest muscles were still tight and sore on Sunday.

Wednesday - No run.  I did my lower body weight workout first, and as soon as I started doing lunges my quads felt like they were pulling and sore.  I should have stopped right then, but instead choose to continue and as a result I ended the workout with very, very sore quads.

Thursday - Every step was painful.  My quads were definitely sore, and my glutes were even a little sore (which doesn't happen often).  Didn't do anything except go to work, and get my hair done.  While at work I tried to get up from my desk and walk around more than normal to stretch out the muscles while they recovered.

Friday- Quads and glutes were still sore, but felt I really should run as I only ran once the week before and I really didn't want to get too behind in my schedule.  I thought the running might help with the muscle soreness, and I'd also be at the gym and could stretch and use the foam roller after.  So I ran...and it was tough!  I managed to run 4 minutes, rest 1, run 2, rest 1, run 2, rest 5, run 4, rest 2, run 2, rest 1, run 2.
So in spite of my sore legs I managed to get the minutes in for my run, just not consecutively, as I should have.

By Sunday, the legs were still sore, but only when I bent them to move up or down stairs, or squat.  Each step was no longer painful, so I decided to get that third run in at the gym, plus some stretching and foam rolling.  The run went a lot better than my other two, but I did end up taking two water breaks, plus a 30 second break during my last 4 minute stretch.  Even with that though, I felt good afterwards.  Like I set a goal and managed to mentally push through without giving in to the desire to stop and rest.

My hope is that this week will go much, much better both for my runs and for my weights.  I'm going to attempt the same schedule as last week.

Sking and Snowshoeing

Yes, I got a bunch of exercise last week.  After walking the dog and snowshoing on Sunday while I was at my parent's I decided to give running a try on Tuesday.  I finished the run, but my knee was still a bit sore.  Since I had other plans for the end of the week I decided to rest until Friday.

I spent Friday morning shovelling snow off my brother's deck, which got me warmed up in time to go sking.  We were sking for about 4 hours, actually I skied and my brother was snowboarding.  We had a good time and chatted quite a bit on the chair lift.  Little brother was pretty impressed with how much better I am.  He actually has to make an effort to catch me on the hill and I handled the black diamonds (which I wouldn't have done a year ago).  I definitely credit all my weight training for the improvement as I didn't ski at all last year.  My legs are so much stronger and my balance is a lot better, which means I'm a lot more confident.  We followed this up with a big lunch out, and once we were back at his place headed out on the snowshoes for about 40 minutes to help lunch digest.

I thought I was doing pretty well, and not feeling sore or too tired.  However, I moved during the night and the pain in all my back muscles and the cramps in my calf muscles decided to wake me up.  Luckily Saturday was a pretty easy day - just a bit of trudging through snow to cut down trees (brother even showed me how to use the chainsaw).  We did go out snowshoing again, this time with his girlfriend and her dogs.  I think we were out for almost an hour.  Of course, we enjoyed some spiked hot chocolate and huge dinner that night which definitely wiped out any calories burned during the day.  We were all ready to pass out by 10:00.  Yup, party animals we are not!

Given that the cookie monster has lived in my stomach for the past two weeks, I wasn't expecting great results when I did my "check in weigh in" this morning.  Two weeks ago was the last time I weight myself and my weight was 176.7 lbs.  I was pleasantly surprised when I stepped on the scale this morning and saw 175.8 on the display.  Not close to my goal of 171 for next week, but a lot better than I was expecting.  Besides all the cookies, my portions have been out of control too, so I've been feeling full a lot more than I've been feeling hungry.

Next week will be my full weigh in/measurements, and I hope to be closer to 171.  Realistically I know that I'm not on track right now to reach that goal, but I should be able to get close (down 1.5 to 2 more pounds if I stick to my plan).  I've been focused on my fruits and veggies, as well as non-meat based sources of protein.  Fingers crossed!

"Best Shape of my Life" Plan

I've decided not to use the words "diet" or "workout regime".  Instead this is my "Best Shape of my Life" plan.  The main goal is to change my life by creating a lifestyle that I can sustain and enjoy.  The result will be the healthiest and fittest me I can be based on good food and great exercise.

For the food part of this plan, I'm going to focus on what makes me feel the best and supports my workouts and other activities.  In thinking about what this food includes, I watched the documentary "Forks Over Knives" and was reminded of how great I felt when I ate a mainly plant-based diet.  This included great sleep, regular bowel movements (at least more regular for me), and I didn't experience the crazy cravings for sugar.  So, that is what I'm going to be doing - transitioning back to a plant-based diet.  I'm definitely not saying I won't eat meat, dairy, or eggs.  I will try my best to make these occasions special, with organic, free-range, and responsibly farmed animals.

My goals for the food part of the plan are:

Reduce constipation

Increase energy

Increase the amount of good sleep

Reduction of skin issues (specifically the rosacea on my face)

The workout part of this plan is going to focus on building a program that I can follow realistically, that is flexible, and fun. 

My goals for the exercise part of the plan are:

Run three 5Ks, setting new PRs at each one

Complete the Warrior Dash

Enjoy a two week canoe trip in Killarney

Increase my strength to the point that I can do 5 unassisted pull-ups

To keep myself on track and accountable on a daily basis I have some specific plans.  I'm going to continue to use My Fitness Pal to track my calorie intake and weekly exercise calories.  At the end of the week, I'll use the information to determine my success at eating a plan based diet, but I'll also use the notes section of the app/website to record how I'm feeling each day (full, hungry, tired, et cetera), and also my bowel movements (more information than  you probably need to know).
I also use My Fitness Plan to track my measurements, and even though I don't like doing it, I have set aside a morning every two weeks to record my body fat percentage, my weight, body mass index, and arm/chest/waist/hips/leg measurements.

My end goals are:

21-33% Body Fat

125-169 Body Weight in pounds

19-25 BMI

My end goal target is May 3rd, which is realistic if I get back on track (as I'm slightly behind the plan already).  I will provide updates over the weeks...

Muscle Soreness

I'm by no means an expert at working out, and this post is just going to reinforce this!

I haven't done any weight training in almost two months.  A combination of dating the indecisive guy, heat, and focusing on running my 5K didn't give me much time or desire to get in to the gym.  Lots of "reasons", but I have enjoyed the break and chance to do some different things with my time.

This week I got back to it, and while I only completed weights two times, my body is feeling it.  The biggest lesson I've learned this week - If you haven't done weights in almost two months, you will not be as strong as you were and if you decide to lift the same weight that you did before your break, it will be hard and you will be really, really sore!

This may be too much info, but the sorest muscles are my gluteus maximus (aka my bum).  Which is both good (if it lifts and rounds out my flat bum), and bad (I sit all day at work).

I decided to do a bit of research for some tips on reducing muscle soreness.  Here's what I've found (love Wikipedia!):

1. Muscle soreness should be gone within 72 hours
2. Increase blood flow to the muscles through low intensity work, massage (yes please!), hot baths, or sauna
3. Cool or icy water may help

I've always thought I felt better if I exercised again.  Apparently exercise increases your pain tolerance temporarily and suppresses the soreness.  This would definitely explain why I seem to be able to push through a second workout and then I'm super sore afterwards.

So, next time I'm super sore, I'll have to make sure I relax in the sauna for a bit, and maybe I can convince indecisive guy to give me a massage (maybe I should focus on my back muscles, rather than the gluteus maximus for that - Ha Ha).

Highland Yard 5K Recap

I finished the Highland Yard 5K on Sunday.  My goal was to run as much as possible and complete the race in under 30 minutes.  Drum roll.....I finished in 32:24.  So not under 30 minutes, but still a PR.
What did I learn from this race?

1. Some races have a lot of fast runners!  I was 12th out of 14 in my age/gender category.  People shot out of the starting and not many people took walking breaks.
2. I need to stick to my training plan, in spite of the ridiculous heat leading up to the race.  I'm sure my endurance would have been much better and I wouldn't have required so many walking breaks.
3. Eating and proper hydration the day before definitely helps with the side cramps.  I only had a minor one and I think that was more from pushing myself more than I was ready to be pushed.
4. You can't count on the weather!  No rain for weeks, and of course we have a major storm the night before the race.  Luckily the heavy rain stopped as we drove to the race.
5. Having my parent's there was great!  But my mom's photo skills need a bit of work (see the only picture of me actually racing below - but I love that she tried!)
6. Your spectators should really stop at Timmies pre-race start.  Dad drove to Timmies after I started running.  Not realizing that so would every other spectator!

I'm in the yellow top - and won't be wearing capris next time (too hot!)



Dad drove to Timmies after I started my run, but was back to see what a sweaty mess I was crossing the finish.





Race Day Prep

This week's post for Running & Reading Long is about what we need to do to prepare for race day.  Since my race is a 5K, it's not too complicated in terms of fueling.  However, I did learn a couple things from my first race that I need to keep in mind this time.

1. Have all the clothes out the night before, including water bottles and snacks for after the race.  This was really helpful the morning of my first race as I wasn't in my own home, and it will be the same this time.
2. Don't eat "junk food" the night before the race!  With my first race I went to the drive-in the night before and ate things I wouldn't normally eat like nachos and cheese.
3. Drink lots of water the day before the race.  Refer to #2, nachos and cheese plus other salty foods and not a lot of water the day before the race meant I ended up with a stitch in my side.  I'm guessing that this is what caused the stitch and that by following #2 and #3 I can avoid it (or at least minimize it) this time around
4. Take your heart rate monitor and watch.  I want to pace myself this time, as my goal is to complete the race in under 30 minutes.

I think those are the key things for me this time around.  Of course, I expect I'll learn something new this time and will just keep adding to my growing "running" knowledge.

My focus this week and next is running.  I've put my cross-training on hold, and I'm really trying to get out for my runs.  Which is a bit tough with dates and work getting in the way and/or making me very, very tired.  At least the heat is breaking a bit today, so that will help with my run tonight.  And with these runs I'm trying to extend the time spent running, and walking less frequently.  I think this will help build my endurance for August 5th!

This race is going to be fun, and I'm a bit nervous as I'm not 100% sure I'll make it in under 30 minutes and my Mom is planning on coming to watch too.

A Life Changer

This week's post for Running and Reading Long, is about overcoming big challenges, life changing challenges.  I'm not sure what to write about.  I've had a couple major challenges in my life, or at least ones I felt were challenges, but I'm not 100% sure that I actually want to share either of them.
Big, deep, breath - here we go:

One of my biggest challenges came in the middle of high school.  I was overweight (by a lot), unhappy, and the people I thought were my friends really weren't.  I was so unhappy that I seriously considered what life would be like for my family if I just wasn't around anymore.  Luckily, I think a lot before I do anything and like to gather lots of information too.  And as a typical teenager I watched a lot of television.
One day I was unhappy, and bumming around on the couch watching talk shows.  I can't remember which talk show it was, but they were talking about "Choice Theory".  The basic premise of which is that everything is a choice, even if the circumstances are out of your control you can still choose how you react to them and deal with them (or not!).
From that moment on "Choice Theory" has played a huge role in my life.  I started being conscious of the choices I was making on a daily basis, big and small.  I started to try and make choices that I thought would make me happy.  Some were small, like choosing what to listen to or wear, to big things like telling my "friends" that if they didn't want me around I wasn't going to bother with them anymore.

Since that day, I've looked at everything as a choice, and I strongly believe that my choices should be things that make me happy, or at least make me less unhappy.  This has led to some incredible experiences like travelling to Manila, Philippines for work three times, weight training with an amazing trainer and loosing almost 100 lbs, going to lovely warm weather destinations with girl friends and having a blast.  Dating is a bit tougher, as I can choose which guys I want to date, but I don't have as much control there :)  But I do my best to control my reactions to what they decide to do/not do, and so far I've been relatively happy with those choices.
I can't think of any choice I've made since that fateful day that I've regretted.  It's amazing to live a life knowing that I'm capable of making choices that I won't regret, and that make my life that much better.  I still have those sad moments, and do give in to not great choices at those times (usually sugar/chocolate related), but they are few and far between.

We finished reading Matt Long's Long Run this week, and I would definitely recommend this book to everyone!  My favourite part matches my belief in choice theory, and I found it so inspiring.  The day he finally decided to stop moping around, and took control of how he was reacting to his injuries and recovery.  I felt so great for him when I read that section of the book.  He proved that how I live my life can be applied to even the most devastating/tough circumstances.

As for my running - the heat has finally broken, and I'm back on track to be able to run the 5K in under 30 minutes the first weekend in August.  Although I've come to the realization of the past three weeks that hot weather plus dating does not equal great nights of sleep.  And lack of sleep means I'm not willing to get up for the early morning workouts.  So this week my schedule has changes to after work workouts followed by a late and very light dinner.

Hope everyone else enjoyed Matt's book and the running is going really well!

Pacing your Running

Wow!  When I chose "pacing" as a topic to explore for Running & Reading Long I didn't think it would be as tough as it has been to find basic information.  What I was looking for was how to figure out my pace as I'm running without using any fancy GPS watches.  What I found was:

• Lots of reviews of GPS watches
• Suggestions to be aware of your breathing and how your muscles feel and adjust your pace according to that
• A lot of suggestions for how to pace the various race distances to maximize your energy and get the best results

While interesting, none of these things really help me figure out what pace I need to aim for to run my 5K in under 30 minutes in August.

Based on the information I did read, and what I've figured out on my own.  My understanding is that pacing is really about how fast (or slow) you run each kilometer during your run.  And a "split" is the time at each kilometer mark.  Or if your in the US - for each mile.  I did find a very neat calculator, that I have found useful for calculating splits at Cool Running.

Calculating splits for a tempo run is pretty straight forward, and easy to manually monitor if you use a stop watch, your heart rate monitor, or the clock while on the treadmill.  During a race, you can manually monitor your splits as long as there are kilometer markers.

Things get trickier if you're running on your own outside.  This takes a bit more thought and preparation.  I haven't tried this yet, but I think I'd have to plan my run and then use a mapping program to figure out where each kilometer mark would be.
Running on a track would help alleviate this issue, but I barely like running the same route twice let alone in circles on a track!

So for my 5K in under 30 minutes, if I run at the same speed for the entire race my splits would have to look like this:

        Kilometer 1 - 6:00

        Kilometer 2 - 12:00

        Kilometer 3 - 18:00

        Kilometer 4 - 24:00

        Kilometer 5 - 30:00

My goal for next week's runs, will obviously be to try and reach these splits for one of my runs.  First I need to actually track where I'm starting!
Closer to the actual race I'll have to figure out a plan - should I go out slower and speed up, or go out faster in case I slow down at the end?

Running Update

How is my running going?

Well, I've stuck to my plan with the tempo runs.  This week I have one hill run and one Fartlek run to complete, which I'm sure I will.

I ran outside on Sunday again, which I've discovered I really enjoy.  However, I defnitely can't run the same path twice.  I wear my Ipod and check out the scenery, but it's not as distracting as being able to read the latest issue of Women's Health and look up at the TVs.

Even with the warmer weather, the outside runs have been great.  Luckily I live in a city with a lot of community trails and parks that make great running destinations.

Next week I start the 5K training plan, which will definitely help me focus on getting my running in under the 30 minutes.

Life List - Run a 5K

I did it!  I completed my first 5K run on Sunday and it couldn't have been a better day.  The sun was shining, and the weather wasn't too hot or too cold.  I definitely want to run the Chocolate Race again next year, and my cheerleader has said she will join me next year.  Although my mini-cheerleader might not be quite ready for it yet.

Here are the pics:

My mini-cheerleader wasn't quite ready to go

But I was ready!

Happy to cross the finish line

One of us was enjoying a chocolate martini

 

I was so glad to have two supportive people cheering me on.  Elizabeth acted as photographer, and her baby, Daisy, was definitely an attention grabber.  She woke up when we arrived at the race, and didn't fall asleep again until we left.  So many people to look at and smile for!

Here are the official stats for my first race:

Finishing time was 34:35

In my age category (Female 30-39) I placed 33rd out of 97

In the 5K I was the 102nd female to finish

My pace was 6:55/km

I'm already planning my next race, and want to finish under 30 minutes.  Which might be more of a challenge as the next one will be the August long weekend.  It will be much warmer!

Blogging Genius and Chocolate Run

Maybe "blogging genius" is a bit of an exaggeration, since I took almost 20 minutes to figure out how to add an image and link to the blog.  But I did it!  All on my own, so I now have a link to the "Running & Reading Long" course that I'm super excited to be taking part in.

My hope is it will keep me going and excited after I complete my first 5K run on Sunday.  Less than a week to go and a bit scary to say the least.  However, my run yesterday went well and I rested for the rest of the day as my shins were not feeling quite right.  Hopefully the three runs I have in my plan to complete this week won't aggravate them too much.  I may forgo my normal weights/yoga routine as last week my feet were cramping like crazy and it was after a run and yoga that the shins started to complain.

Or maybe I'll just play it by ear and see how my legs feel on Wednesday night.  Which normally means I'll probably end up doing the core class and yoga, rather than resting.

I figure this is my first of many races, so why not try things out and see what works/doesn't work.

My two goals for the race on Sunday:

1. Finish it in less than an hour (I think realistically I should manage it in under 45 minutes)
2. Enjoy lots of chocolate after with my cheering squad composed of my friend Elizabeth and her baby Daisy

What could possibly go wrong at the Chocolate Race? Run out of choclate maybe, which might be devastating!  I'm super excited to be able to cross off another "Life List" item.