Summer Challenge Day 17

Today has been a bit challenging for me to get motivated. I got up at my normal time and had planned to cycling, but Celeste had company last night and evidently they stayed up too late because my earlier riser wasn't moving and I need her to keep an eye on Autumn while I ride...so I messed around the house, had some breakfast...cheerios with almond milk and a banana...then once she got up we were off to look for a bathing suit top for her...so no ride this morning...

Got back and dropped the gang off and headed to they gym for a full body weight workout, then a zumba class. This was a good class. I really enjoyed it and I am excited that this instructor is going to start teaching a regular zumba class as of this Friday...the class today was a beginners class and it is starting to seem pretty easy...glad there will now be more intense zumba classes at my gym on multiple days....the only thing with the Friday class is it will be right after my kickboxing class! There should be another full body st session in there as well, but I think it will get moved to Saturday when I have no classes! The only thing about my gym is the class schedule changes monthly and so I have to adjust to work around the classes I am doing, but it is all good...love more class options!

I spent a couple of hours playing with Autumn in the pool and while it is not really lap swimming, she is getting to the point that we do swim a good bit together. Today it was holding hands and swimming under water...we have some play time as well. She loves to be thrown in the pool now...or lifted up to the sky and then kinda dropped in the pool. I get on my knees and lift her up in the air, then bring her to about chest level and drop her...it is kinda like a military press with her! Loving this time with my girls this summer!

Lunch was a grab and go. Celeste made me a sandwich on whole wheat, turkey, avacado and tomato...snackage was veggie straws and a green tea...

Dinner tonight was turkey burgers with all the veggie toppings on a whole wheat bun...

I met another lady at the gym today that is doing the Tri I plan to do. She told me there was a training plan available for free download...I thought cool! having never done a tri, it is challenging to know how to balance all the sports and strength training and classes. I came home and checked out the plan...I think I will use it as a model for what I am doing, but this plan is assuming you have no base in the sports...I can ride 15 miles and easily run the 5k, where I am weak is swimming so that really needs to become a focal point for me...working on the details of a plan now and trying to keep it doable...but at the same time, not wanting to drop my distance for long runs...always that possible full later to look at...lol...

Over all it has been a good day. Now I am off to relax and get some sleep...

Summer Challenge Day 16

Today has been an awesome day for me workout wise! I got up this morning and went running...3 miles 27 minutes....best time to date I think! Then a kick butt kick boxing workout with a new instructor for me. Our regular instructor for this class was out today with a back injury and I pray she is back soon. The class was fun and challenging! He seemed to focus more on like boxing drills which was different pace and intense. I love the kick boxing side of this so I missed Nicole today. She is tough, but fun! However I came out drenched in sweat...between the run and the class! Then I hit the pool for some swim time and if I am honest, I must say, it is feeling amazing to swim and see that I am stronger and my endurance is so much higher! I love feeling healthy and strong!

Yesterday I was focused on changing goals, so I didn't share this, but I was lifting yesterday...lat pull downs with a twist...you do them on the cable station and stand and pull them down like a swim motion...anyhow one of the trainers came by and was like "Wow...girl...I see some muscles popping out in that back!"...That made me look in the mirror and from the angle I could see some muscle in my upper back...YAY!!! That made me feel amazing! Near the end of my workout I was doing shoulder press and during a rest, I caught a glimpse of my upper leg...it look like a bump on the outside of my leg....I looked down to see what it was...you know thinking this could be bad...a knot in my leg...not good...it was a muscle! So loving my body these days!

I got on the scale tonight...I know...that is not something I need to do and especially not at night...no real change in these last 15 days...but you know I am okay with that! I didn't do measurements, I am waiting for one month to do that, but it really didn't bother me that the scale hasn't changed...one it is night and eating has been off today and was off over the weekend, two it is the time of month my weight is the highest anyway...and I know I am building muscle and burning fat...so who cares what a dumb old scale says! I love how I look and feel and that is the best place to be....for the first time in my life I am comfortable with my body! I am comfortable walking around in a two piece at the pool, or taking off a soaked t-shirt and going to a sports bra in a class...For the first time in my life I am at peace with what my body looks like and I truly love it...no it is not perfect and it is not where I want it to be, but it is strong and healthy...tanned and toned...my endurance is better than ever...

I asked the question, the other day on Fabulous Fitness...what is your weakest link in your fitness journey...mine is nutrition...I love working out, I love getting sweaty and feeling the high that comes from a good hard workout...but I also love food! (some people have dreamed of hearing me say that...lol) the problem is some of the foods I love are not good for me and I know in moderation they say everything is ok...but processed, chemically loaded foods are poison to my body regardless of the doseage I take! I have got to get back to a place of eating clean, healthy nutritious foods and eating them in abundance! I discovered today that I burn around 1200 cals a day in exercise...to give my body what it needs I need to eat a ton of food and this is where I struggle with eating clean...it takes a ton of food to have enough to fuel my body...suggestions from my clean eating friends?????

Moving forward with the Tri training plans and looking at a tri for Sept 25, 2011! This is why the nutrition needs to come into line...i am pushing hard, training hard and my body deserves the best fuel!

Summer Challenge Day 14 and 15

I know slack on the posting lately...it was late when I got settled last night after church and really yesterday was a good day...only workout time was push mowing grass, eating was soso...had some blueberry pie after church! It was yummy...and then it was back to watching it today!

I am struggling a little bit right now, dealing with some family stuff and it is making it a little hard to focus, however I did workout hard and strong today...The day started with a kick butt zumba class...I think someone went and got some inspiration last week and unloaded a ton of it on us this morning...but hey it was a zumba party and it was fun and a great workout...after zumba I hit the gym for a full body weight workout...this is new for me. Normally I break weights into three day splits...but since I am seriously looking a triathlon in September, I am shifting to tri training and recommendations are for a full body workout 3x a week...so we will give this a try...if nothing else it keeps my body guessing...instead of weight training on the other days, it will be stretching days and core work.....

I posted a statement today that said, "It is a dream until you write it down, then it is goal." It is time to stop dreaming about what I could do and do it! I know I can complete a tri and currently that has become my dream...today it becomes a goal!

I am working on a training shedule that gives, 3 days running, 3 biking and 3 swim workouts...obviously there will be more than one workout a day...I plan to lift or stretch on alternating days and for now I will continue with a class a day (Hey these are just pure fun to me,a s well as a good workout, but I love the classes!)...later that may have to adjust...time will tell...

Today I finished the day with a 15 mile bike ride! Oh yeah! I am really doing this and I feel amazing!...I think I am ready for this training because I have gotten the point that I can listen to my body and I will rest if I need to, I will eat more if I need to, I will slow down if I need to!

I enjoyed trying a Lara bar today...pretty good stuff..it was a chocolate brownie...pretty good! Something I would eat again for sure!

I also had a blast swimming underwater with my 5 year old today...she is getting really good! My 14 year old is still running intervals!

Okay off I go...need to get a hot bath and settle down...part of the equation has got to be rest!

Night night everyone!

Summer Challenge Day 12 and 13

Sorry no blog yesterday! It was a good day...I got up early and made it to kickboxing and zumba classes...I had planned to do a tri, bi and shoulder workout, but didn't have time...it was ok because we used bands in kickboxing, pretty much took care of the muscles I was going to target anyway. I spent the afternoon hanging with my two favorite girls and then we chilled at home for the evening...Food was clean for the day except my daughter treated me to an ice cream coffee shake...that was my treat for the week...

To my amazement Celeste decided to go out for a walk yesterday that turned into a walk run in intervals! She said it was fun and as I right that, she is out there running/walking for a bit...When I first started running, I tried to get her to go with me, but she was not interested...I have brought it up a few times over the last couple of years, always to be shot down...it excites me that she is finding it on her own...of course she is like mommy and she wants to run alone at her own pace, for her own benefit! But it excites me to see the kids finding their own fitness path! I so love it! They are on their own journeys and that is going to be awesome to watch as they grow up!

Today, I got up not feeling good...kinda sick to my tummy. Got a bowl of cream of wheat with vanilla whey protien. Autumn, my 5 year old wanted to try it...she is nortorious for not liking smushy foods, so I was shocked when she like it and wanted her own. I made hers with out the whey protien. I added some vanilla to her to make it taste the same. She loved it! Yes! I love it as they try new things.

For workout today, it was mowing grass with a push mower for 2 hours! That was it for working out today...

Foods have been clean and healthy...

Summer Challenge Day 11

Well today turned into an unexpected rest day! Unplanned rest days are not good for me mentally, maybe physically, but when plans get changed I don't deal well with it...

I got up this morning knowing it was going to be a tough day to get a good workout in...My 14 year old, Celeste, had several plans going on today, translates to added traveling for mommy. She was baby sitting her one of her favorite baby boys today for a few hours and then off to a friends for the night.. Autumn, the 5 year old munchkin, had swim lessons this morning... and it was raining so no outside run for mommy...

Got up and had a bowl of rice cereal with almonds and almond milk for breakfast, took care of some errands and then headed to the pool, outside in the rain for a swim lesson...Autumn did great in the pool! She was swimming on top of water and going under to swim...awesome job, but she got too cold...her lips turned purple and the swim instructor got her out of the water to warm up..at the end she wanted to get back in and try the back stroke so we let her, she started shivering again, but hey she is a determined kid and she did float on her back! This led to a little girl that hasn't felt great all day...she has been cold and so the decision was made to stay close to home and keep her in out of the rain and where she could cover up if need be. She is like mommy and has always had issues regulating her body temp...we can both get cold and stay that way for a very long time before our body temp will return to normal, which is on the very low side on average.

Lunch was a turkey sandwich on all natural 12 grain bread with all natural veggie straws and green tea..

Snack this afternoon was stawberries and cashews (Thanks Amy S....my new addiction!)

Dinner...we decided to get take out...not the best choice, but mommy got grilled chicken and slaw, added mashed sweet potatoes at home...it was good and I enjoyed getting to sit down and eat something I didn't cook...lol...

I did take some of the down time today to work on a training plan for the Triathlon I am hoping to do early fall and looked at some marathons for the end of the year, first of 2012...so no I haven't completely ruled it out...still thinking about it!

Now I am going to go cuddle with my little popcicle and read...If all goes well (she seems fine now) training will resume normally tomorrow...

Oh I did get a new pair of NIKE running shoes today! A running friend called me and told me she had gotten these shoes last month, but just couldn't adjust to them. The arch was high in them and since she knew I had the high arch she wanted to know if I wanted to try them! Awesome! I needed to get a new pair anyway...so it worked out good for both of us!

Summer Challenge Day 10

Today has been a good and productive day! I got to sleep a little later this morning....that is always good! I had leftover whey protien pancakes with all natural peanut butter and banana for breakfast. I headed to the store to get gogggles for my 14 year old, Celeste. Decided to get a new bathing suit while I was there...They had one on sale that I liked...it is a two piece for the up coming 4th celebreations...I, like most of us, have always hated shopping for a bathing suit...I actually enjoyed this today! It was fun especially when I had to down size from the size I first tried on! I love it!! :)

Then I headed to the gym to get my lower body workout and running in before my zumba class...I did squats, lunges, leg press, calve press, leg curls, hip abductors and hip adduction, plus some ab work...I ran intervals for 35 minutes and then went to zumba. My BFF joined me for this class again! It was fun! It is getting easier as I learn the routine and kinda know what is coming! I was also trying out some new cross trainer shoes for this class..

After the workout, I came home to get the girls to go to the pool. Celeste had my strawberries and cashews ready for me with a big bottle of water. She had packed a lunch for me in the cooler consisting of a turkey breast, sweet potato and some Greek yogurt for my afternoon snack! She is good. She really pays attention to what I eat and when I eat it! Autumn, the 5 year old, actually helped eat the cashews and strawberries...she loves both.

We enjoyed and afternoon of playing in the pool and then came home to clean house and let mommy study! If all goes well, in another 6-8 weeks I will be a certified personal trainer! Celeste is my biggest advocate for this. She thinks it is cool that mom is so into fitness and stuff!

for dinner we decided to have egg white omlettes with spinach, mushrooms, onions, tomatos and feta...with a slice of all natural 12 grain bread.

I received an e-mail from Jeff galloway about a new free download he has for 1:1 run/walk intervals, so I downloaded that and put it on my ipod...not sure if a marathon is in the picture or not, but if it is I think I will use Galloway's method and do intervals...currently I am focusing on a tri...we will see what comes next, but for now I am planning to continue to build my run miles every other week so if I decide to do the full I can...

Now I am off to do yoga and then a warm bath and some reading before bed...

Hope it has been an awesome day for everyone...

My thought today....If you don't dream, you will never reach beyond your comfort zone to try something new...you will never know what might have been...so dream BIG!

Summer Challenge Day 9

This is going to be short and sweet tonight. I am having major internet issues today so while I have signal and before I lose it again I am going to try to post this.

I got up early this morning and had oatmeal with blueberries and flax seed, with 2 scrambled egg whites for breakfast. We packed lunch and snacks and headed to the YMCA so I could workout before Autumn's swim lesson...I did an upper body workout...chest and back and some abs....then I went outside for a run...only ran about a mile then had to walk...it was too hot to run! Next came kickboxing! I love this class...still not sure what I am doing, but it is fun and I feel it...so all is good! The instructor is great about explaining what is going on and encouraging you where you are...today she was using bands in the punches, but told the newbies not to...then she brought me one to try...it was good! Made it more intense! I like intense!

While Autumn had her swim lesson, I sipped on a protien shake made with almond milk and chocolate whey protien...then it was swim time...this was the most amazing thing today. My 5 year old, who has been afraid to put her face in the water, decided she could do it...not only did she get her whole head under water, she took off swimming under water!! NO JOKE!! It was all I could do to get her to stay above the surface to tell her I was proud of her...the head life guard said to lose the life vest, she was ready and that was all it took!

We munched on our usual pool snacks...greek yogurt, grapes, I think I had part of liff bar too...

Came home made half a sandwhich with turkey, tomoto, spinach and avacado..

Dinner was oatmeal pancakes made with vanilla whey protien and topped with strawberries...yummy!!

Went for a short bike ride this evening...had hoped for 10 mile, got about 8...storms moving in forced me back home!...now off to do some yoga and then a warm bath and reading...

Night everyone!

ps...sorry not that short! You know me...I like to talk (write)!