January Week 2 Workout Recap

Another week done in January, another week I feel I did pretty well with the exercise front. Monday I did take the day off. I have been getting these head splitting migraines and I had one that happened the morning of Monday. Usually they had been occurring in the middle of the night and I can try and sleep it off, but Monday, I had to teach and take care of the kid. Matt came home early from work to watch Mace so I could sleep. But man these migraines are awful. I have never felt my head hurt so badly. It feels like my right eye is being pushed out of the socket and just argh! it hurts! Wednesday, I was watching a friends kid while she was being monitored in the hospital in the labor and delivery dept. she didn't have the baby but she had to have some other things checked out. Here is how I did this week:

Sunday: rest
Monday: rest
Tuesday: 3.5 miles run/walk (14:51 min/mile)
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: 2 mile run/walk (14:50 min/mile)
Friday: 2 mile walk (15:45 min mile)
Saturday: 7.5 miles run/walk (14:47 min/mile)

Total Mileage: 15 miles

Staying in my goal at staying under 15 min miles on my run walk days even though I am just under it but I'm still under. 22 weeks pregnant this week. I am still having Braxton Hicks contractions when I am exercising. Mostly notice them when I am in a walking stint. I also started to notice that I am getting round ligament stretching pain in my lower abs. It diminishes around 1.5 miles but the first 1.5 miles it is pretty noticeable and I am just taking it easy when it gets too much pulling sensation. I am listening to my body. It is just adjusting to my belly which is getting bigger and bigger every week!

Yesterday I had a Kick in Energy!

I haven't had a kick of energy like I did yesterday in a very long time. I seriously had no downtime whatsoever and it was pretty cool, however I was dog tired by the time we got home last night. But I didn't need a nap during the day I just kept going, going, going. Who knows when I will have another day like that. Here is what I did:

8am-Kid woke me up
9- breakfast with said kid
fed the dog, took out dog, stepped in dog pee on the stairs, ew!
9:45- started 1st load of laundry, vacuumed downstairs, cleaned Mason's room, with his help and vacuumed his room and upstairs hallway.
10:30- cleaned the kitchen, unloaded dish washer, switched out the Christmas plates for the everyday plates.
11- get kid dressed, snacks packed for gym. get me dressed for gym. move laundry from washer to dryer and start load #2.
11:15- out the door to go to gym
11:30- drop kid off at the daycare at the gym and went and did my 2 mile run
12:15-yoga
1:45- pick up kid and run home asap
2:05-arrive home, eat lunch
2:15-try to coupon as fast as possible
2:35- Matt arrive home, I run upstairs to change out of workout clothes and get dressed
2:45- leave house
3:15- Me and Mace arrive at chiropractor office for adjustment
3:30-hour massage- AHHHH! SO NICE!
4:50- arrive at Kroger to shop
5:55- eat dinner at Chic-fil-a
6:30-Arrive at target to get last minute things and cheaper priced items
7:30- arrive home, put all the groceries away
7:50-change kid into jammie and get him into bed
8:05-sort laundry #1 and move laundry #2 from wash to dryer
8:20- I can rest, finally, oops have to make the hubs lunch for tomorrow, then rest!

I felt go, go, go all day long. Yes there were some things for me to relax and unwind but I still felt rushed even in yoga. It just went by too quickly!

Hoping for an eventful day tomorrow to, but I am packed with teaching tomorrow. It is good to be blessed with students!

QOTD: Do you get days where you have no idea where your energy came from and look back at all you accomplished in the day?

Disney World Marathon Weekend

I am loving reading about all the people running in in the Disney Marathon Weekend in Orlando that starts TODAY! The 1st race of many began early this morning. The 5k. I have 6 weeks until my 1st Disney race and I am trying to learn as much as possible about the Disney races to be as prepared as possible. So this year they introduced the Dopey challenge because people are just crazy! Originally if you ran the 1/2 marathon and the full marathon you got the Goofy medal cause you were CRAZY! There is 1 race per day so that it is not all in one day! This year here are all the races for the Dopey challenge:

5k (3.1 miles)

10k (6.2 miles)

1/2 Marathon (13.1 miles)

Full Marathon (26.2 miles)

48.6 miles total

Oh my! That is just plain CRAZY amounts of mileage! Do I want to do it someday? HECK YEAH! First of all can you imagine the amount of calories you burn running that many days  plus if these people go to the park too? I think I would be sleeping as much as possible. Each day is the new race ending with the full marathon on Sunday! But the people that do complete the Dopey challenge are going to walk away with some serious Disney Bling! 6 medals total. The 5k medal, 10k medal, 1/2 marathon medal, Full marathon medal, Goofy Medal for doing 1/2 and full and the Dopey medal for doing all the races. Someday I will run the Disney marathon, that was the race that started it all. The medal I wanted when I saw it in Runner's World magazine. That is what peaked my interest in running! Someday I will run this race, but I might just start with the Goofy first cause nearly 50 miles in 4 days, that is SCARY! But sounds fun too!

Big shout out to my friends running in the Disney marathon Weekend! GO SARG T! (one of my pink ladies leaders.) Heather M. from Through Heather's Looking Glass and all the others that are running. Stay safe, hydrate and rest!

QOTD: Would you ever run in the Dopey challenge?

Oh Man!

I think this is the coldest outside I have ever felt in my life!!! currently in central VA at 9:44 am it is 5 degrees outside with a wind chill/feels like -6 degrees! THAT IS CRAZY COLD!

Everyone stay safe and warm if you venture out. As far as running outside. BUNDLE UP or go run inside at a gym. I have a friend here that has been waiting for the last few hours to go for a run outside and decided since the temp hasn't gone up at all just to do stair work in her house instead of hill pickups.

Me personally I will be running at my gym in another hour or so. I have a good solid 3.5 mile run. YEA!

And yes, all my AZ friends your 44 degree morning is quite nice compared to my frigid weather! You are lucky. Enjoy the outside weather and go run outside for me, please!

QOTD: Are you running inside or outside today?

Homemade Green Smoothies Recipes

Mason loves to eat! He really does. He is in that phase where he wants to help me make things when I am making dinner and such. Just this morning he ate 1 egg, 1/2 c oatmeal with wheatgerm, 1/2 glass milk and still wanted more. So he got some GF Chex cereal to fill him out.

Mason loves fruit! He loves all fruit and his first favorite fruit were blueberries. He would eat them by the pint. Veggies, not so much! He despises them. He won't even eat carrots. After Mason was born my doula had me try one of her green smoothies that she made. It was yummy and didn't taste too vegetable like. So when Mason got old enough every now and then I make green smoothies for us. (Matt even likes them and he hates veggies too!) They are pretty easy. You need a good blender. i have had a, Kitchen Aid. It has a liquify setting on it so it really breaks down the pieces. But other people recommend the Vitamix or the Blendtec which is what I am currently usingBut if you check them out they are pretty pricey! They are great and if we had that kind of money to spend we would have gotten one of them. Green smoothies are easy. Here is my go to easy and generally low cost. Because we are still buying fresh fruit and veggies which can get pricey.

Spinach and Apple Green Smoothie:

1 whole apple quartered

a few baby carrots

1-2 handfuls of spinach

1/2 banana

splash of lime juice or lemon juice

splash of prune juice

1/4-1/2 cup water (depending on how thick or thin you want the drink.)

Blend together until all smooth and drinkable.

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Want fun colors. Add some strawberries or blueberries to the blender and it won't be green anymore!

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Tropical Green Smoothie: 

1/4 cup frozen mangos

1/4 frozen pineapple

2 Tablespoons coconut

1/2 banana

1-2 Handfuls of spinach

splash lime juice

water to thin

Veggieful Green Smoothie:

Handful Kale

Handful Spinach

1/2 an avocado

fingergip grab of cilantro

1/2 banana or apple

water to thin

In all honesty you can really add whatever you want to these things and they generally taste great. If it is too veggie tasting add more fruit. We are more fruit based now because that is how the kid will drink it. We have gone mostly veggies with a little fruit. About 80:20 ratio. But we probably do 60% fruit and 40% veggies. Let me know what you think if you try them! 

Also check out Green Smoothie Girl she has a book available with tons of recipes. Or sign up for her newsletter and get some recipes that way along with some healthy advice on eating! 

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here to join my private online community where you get info, tips, support and encouragement + a free gift with tips to help you get started with the right mindset for healthier nutrition choices TODAY!

January Week 1 Workout Recap

This week with New Years threw me off my normal schedule. And I just didn't want to work out on Tuesday or Wednesday. Oh, and I did get puked on early in the week so Mace really shouldn't have gone to the daycare anyhow! But I did do some workouts, just not as much running, running as I should have done.

Oh and it is the beginning of the year which means increased gym attendance and restricted time on the treadmill. The gym has a 30 minute limit on the machines so I have to watch to see how many machines are taken up to see if I can stay on or move to another machine.

Monday: 3.5 mile walk- 15:43 pace
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: 1/2 mile walk- 16:00 pace. 1 hour prenatal yoga
Friday: rest
Saturday: 4 mile walk- 16:15 pace

My goal for this next week is to run on Tuesday and Thursday as my training runs and Saturday is my LONG run of 7.5-8 miles. WOW! Longest yet! Monday and Friday will be walking days again and I will continue to do my prenatal yoga on Thursdays! 7 weeks! ONLY 7 more weeks until my 1/2 marathon!

52 Week Savings Challenge

(source)

This year the hubs and I want to be ahead of the game at the end of the year. We have been taking about how can we have savings for family pictures, Christmas or even a vacation for next year. (yes next year as the trip to FL for the Princess Half is our big trip this year.) This 52 week Challenge program is floating around on Facebook and I thought it was worth trying out.

(click on the pictures to see a larger view)

But for us, paying $200 a month by December didn't really work. December we have real estate and personal property taxes, and our HOA due. So that much for December alone would really hurt us and we probably wouldn't be able to complete the challenge. So I came up with a new one, same money amounts and all but it is just spread out throughout the year. So, if you could save $1378 in one year, would you do it? Also don't feel like you have to do the entire 52 weeks version. Just do $1-$26 and then repeat or on the 2nd half of the year go $26-$1 so again, your December is super easy to handle. You will still be saving more money than you might be saving now! It is worth a try, right? I will post an update half way through the year to see if this is actually working or not. And let me know how it is going for you too!

QOTD: Which version would you try if you did the 52 week challenge? Or would you come up with one on your own to fit your families needs?

My New Threads!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my new Running For Two shirt by For Two Fitness in Spring that Santa brought me for Christmas. I have worn it twice now. One to a long run and yesterday to yoga to show off to all the other Momma's.

I have gotten so many compliments on it. On my long run a ton of people were like, "WOW! WAY TO GO MOMMA!" "Cute" and of course lots and lots of Awe's! The color is perfect for me. The spring color is a Kelly Green color and is perfect to bring out my red hair and of course red face from running but that is ok.

I love the fit! IT IS AWESOME! Yesterday during yoga I never had to adjust my shirt down. It is plenty long enough to cover my belly and there is still a ton of room left for me to grow. The fabric is super soft and I never had any chaffing from the hem. It fits and feels so nice!

All you fit momma's out there, this is definitely a piece of clothing I suggest you invest in. It will last through your whole pregnancy and it also answers that question, is she pregnant or not? People know I am pregnant when I am wearing the shirt. I LOVE IT!

~After yoga yesterday!~

4 Months Pregnant

Yesterday I have finally hit 21 weeks pregnant! YEA! Less than 20 weeks left until we meet our little guy or girl! Yep we still don't know and we should be finding out on the 13th!

What's up with baby? Per What To Expect.com at 16 weeks the baby is as big as an onion weighing at 3.5 ounces. At 20 weeks as big as a large banana weighing 11 ounces. Also as of 16 weeks the baby can start to hear sounds from outside the uterus. So baby will be hearing the piano lessons and definitely be hearing my horn playing! By 20 weeks the baby is practicing for life outside the womb. It is practicing swallowing, and can taste the difference in the amniotic fluid as that changes from what I eat on a day to day basis.

It feels like the whole last month I was sick. I had bronchitis for the first 2 weeks and a pesky cold for the last 2 weeks. When I was pregnant with Mason, I never got sick once! NOT ONCE! This kid, an entire month. Exercise took a backseat for me to get better. When I was feeling good I did run/walk.

I also got a new running schedule to get my mileage up to prepare me for the half marathon at the end of Feb. I just need to stay healthy and well so that I can do my long runs on the weekends and the shorter runs in the week!

I am still getting Braxton hicks contractions when I exercise. I think it will be a constant for me up until I deliver. I only get 1 though that I can feel where with Mason I would get 2-3 in a 45 minute window.

I noticed that this baby is sitting lower in my belly than Mason did. I do have to use the bathroom more frequently that I had hoped I would have to at this point. And often have to use the bathroom when walking/running. I'm still napping/resting during the middle of the day to keep my energy up for the later end of the day.

I did start listening to my HypnoBirthing CD's in week 20. I have been listening to them for my afternoon rest/nap. Weird/exciting experience: I got flashes of my labor with Mason that I don't remember. I realized how much my Doula helped me, and I am surprised that she didn't pass out from all the breathing she did to help me. I also remember emotional feelings from the labor and birth. It kind of surprised me. I was crying when I woke up. Very powerful emotions!

That is about it. My belly is still about 4-5 weeks bigger now than I was at this point with Mason. I am still down 3-4 lbs from my starting weight. Slowly my weight is going up but again, I am trying my darndest to keep it as low as possible! Also, check out my new tab at the top for pregnancy related blog posts, including my monthly updates!

2014 Goals

HAPPY NEW YEAR! I love new years because it is a chance to start over and try to do better in all that you do, or choose to do. My usual goals are to lose weight, make more lunches for my hubs, do better at my church duties.

Here are a list of my goals for this year:

1. Weight loss/Staying Healthy-
This year is different. I can't lose weight because I am pregnant. My goal with that is to not gain too much. I am already doing pretty well in that department. I am still 4-5 pounds under what I started this pregnancy at, which is a pretty good feeling. I am not doing it on purpose. If I am hungry than I eat. But this pregnancy, I am still exercising, a lot more than I was with the first. I feel fuller sooner too. So I am not eating as much as I used to.

Also, I am eating better foods in general. I have indulged, I love my desserts, but again I can't eat too much without feeling icky and sick. So I think that is a good thing for me. I get little tastes not the whole cake! Also once the baby is born my goal is to try and stay healthy, and let my body and the baby do the work in the weight loss dept with the breast feeding. Hoping that this time the breast feeding will help me shed some of the baby weight I put on.

2. Exercise-
I plan on exercising as long as I can before baby. I already know my cutoff for the gym though which will be May 1 so that it is a full month instead of a partial month payment. I plan on running as long as I can too. I will not be running long distances at the end of the pregnancy, but if I can continue to do 1-2 slow, slow, slower miles than that would be nice. But if not, than a nice walk would be great too. I plan on doing yoga up until I have the baby. I will probably fork out a day price to go to the yoga class because I think it will help me in the end more than it does now.

After baby I plan on starting to run again in August. I am giving myself the full 2 months to rest and recover after baby. It could be a little longer depending when the baby arrives in May but Aug 1 I will be in the gym. I also plan on running/walking in the Women's 4 miler that is at the end of Aug/early Sept. It is such a great race I don't want to miss it. Then it is getting back into training and such. Still debating if I can pull off running a 1/2 marathon in November or not. We will see how I am feeling after baby. But that is in the plans for me!

3. Blog pageviews-
I really love writing in this blog. It is personal, it is real and it is fun. I love hearing my friends read it. I would love for all of your friends to read it too. I would love to get double the number of monthly page views by the end of the year. I know that it is just me, but I also know that a year ago, I was looking for other blogs out there to help inspire me to get off my duff and get moving and I hope to do the same for someone else! Through Heather's looking Glass, Healthy Heddleston and This Runners Trials are the 3 blogs that I visit all the time and helped me keep on moving. I am inspired by their stories and adventures!

4. Be a Better Mother-
Yes that is true. I am still learning how to be a mom and there are things that I am lacking in and things that are pretty good. I need/want to be better at reading with my son. Sitting down with him explaining things. Make him put the puzzles together without my help. It is so easy for me to just do things for him. He needs to learn on his own and I really struggle with having him figure it out on his own, cause it is just easier for me to do it for him. On top of that I have to learn how to be a mom to 2 kids. I am scared for this. I am scared about the whole juggling thing. I just hope and pray that my kids are patient with me as I learn how to be a mom to both. As my husband says, take it one day at a time.

5. Continue to grow my piano studio-
I love teaching. I love my students. It is sad that I am having a hard time finding students in my area. By the end of the year I hope to have a steady solid 10 students with a possible wait list. I can only fit 10 in my schedule with the hubs and 10 is plenty to have when I am also a full time stay at home mom. Teaching is just amazing though. I love being able to pass on the love of music to our next generation.

So there you have it! My goals. If I think of any more I will write them out, but I have spent all day thinking about them and this is what I have right now. Also on a cool note, this is my 100th post! Such a small number but still I have done 100 posts in the last 4 months! Pretty neat!

QOTD: Did you make new goals this year or keep some of the old ones?