Can't Believe August Weather

I just can't get over how mild the weather has been in central VA this summer. (I am knocking on wood right now as I write this!) It has been such a mild summer that I am getting nervous as to what this winter will have for us. But still it has been amazing. The past 2 mornings have felt almost cold and perfect running conditions. The Saturday runs for the training program have all been amazingly tolerable, except for maybe 1. I just can't believe how amazing this "summer" has been.

I am looking forward to the fall, because it is my favorite season! I love running in the crisp morning air and see the fog hanging heavy on the grass in the mornings. I already told Matt that Saturday mornings are mine to go running so I am totally looking forward to that!

What season is your favorite to run in?

August Week 3 Recap

I just can't get over how fast time is flying. With Mason it seemed like everyday and every week crawled by and now it is zooming by, so much so that I can't even get this out by MONDAY! Sorry!

I am doing so well with my workouts and PiYo. Yes I still miss a couple of days but hey life happens but I haven't fallen off the wagon yet! I am trying to add in exercise activities with Mason too, because his 3 year old body needs it just as much as my body does. And it almost always ensures a nap for him later in the day. Bonus points for mommy there! I took my monthly transformation pictures this past week! YEA! I might not have lost weight on the scale but I am losing inches. This week my goal is to eat better and follow my nutrition plan more closely!

This past week I also started Mason with some schooling activities. Since he isn't potty trained yet he can't go to the pre-school we really want him to go to. No diaper policy. So this year I am taking his pre-pre-schooling in my own hands. I went to Barnes and Noble and found a great book to start with and so far he is doing really well. He has the attention span of a 3 year old (about 30 min) but so far so good. I just need to keep a consistent schedule.

Collin is also growing by leaps and bounds. Gone are the growth spurt days and back to sleeping through the night, thank goodness! I am so glad to have a baby that is sleeping 8+ hours straight through the night, then he feeds at 5am and passes back out for a few more hours. I don't know how I did it or what I did. It just happened. (don't hate)!

Workout Recap:
Sunday: rest
Monday: PiYo sculpt
Tuesday: PiYo Sweat
Wednesday: PiYo Core
Thursday: PiYo Drench
Friday: rest
Saturday: walked around a mall for about 4 hours. We had our last training run this morning but we all slept in and I had to feed Collin while everyone was racing then I cheered them on to the finish. This coming Saturday is our big 4 mile race!

PiYo Test Group...Last Call

Ok everyone! Today is the last day to sign up for the PiYo Private Test Group to be able to get it in the mail next week! I know some of you have been wondering about it and if it actually works and I can say that IT DOES! I have been doing PiYo for 40 days now and I have lost 8.25 inches. AND my diet has not been that stellar so the inches lost are from the workouts! My butt is lifted and my belly and hips have lost the most inches.

My diet hasn't been too bad, I have one bad day a week generally but we have been eating out more or having people over and I like to "cook, cook" when someone comes over . I think a huge part of me being able to still lose weight with a wonky diet is because of Shakeology! It is seriously amazing! I don't have cravings like I used to and I am not tempted to go out during lunch and get fast food. Which means that Mason is eating healthier too because he is not eating all my fries either! So the best way to get results is to pair PiYo and Shakeology! It seriously works and I can't wait to see the changes I will have in another month or 2 from now! I am worth it, so I make it happen. And so are you! If you want to get results pair Beachbody or whatever workout program you are doing with Shakeology. Even if you can't workout everyday or what not. I would still say drink Shakeology because it is a great, way better than slim fast or other meal replacements, out there!

So here are my results. They are subtle but they are there! 8.25 inches people! And to note my black shorts I am wearing appear longer because they aren't being stretched as much as they were in Day 1 so they are hanging on me a little bit!

So if you are interested, yes I am taking to you... Fill out this form and I will get back to you! And if you are thinking about being in a future test group fill this out too so we can keep in touch and you can be the first to know about future groups! Or if you have questions fill this out, SERIOUSLY just fill it out!

Running Tips and Tricks: Aches & Pains

Running is hard work! It really is. And often we find that our legs are sore or our back hurts, or man look at that BLISTER! These are common aches and pains from actually putting forth an effort at something that is physically challenging. Here are a few tips and tricks to help with those pesky aches and pains we get.

Leg soreness: There are different parts of your legs that will be sore or the whole leg will be sore but for me my shins/calf and my IT band area. After a run if your shins or calfs have been sore it is best to use the R.I.C.E. formula to help out.

Rest: take a break. It is ok to take a nap if you have to but make sure you rest after a run. Your body worked for you so it is time to work for your body and allow it some downtime!

Ice: Make sure you ice your legs or anywhere that it hurting. A bag of peas or a lunch ice pack is great but it can help with the swelling and can make your legs feel better.

Compression: Compression socks are the new fad around town. If you look at runners around town you will see most of them sporting socks that go up to their knees. No these are not the new fad in tube socks, well they might be, but more than likely they are compression socks. There are some super fun socks out there too. They help increase circulation in your legs and reduce lactic acid build-up. RunningSkirts.com has some super cute compression running socks!

Elevate: Elevate your legs. Sometimes after running you might have some swelling. So while you are RESTING, ICING, prop your feet up on a pillow up on the couch. This is great! You are doing 3 things at once. My hubs know that when I get home that I will rest for about an hour before I really do anything, otherwise I crash and crash hard later in the day!

Massage: Some other ways to help your body out are massages! I love me a massage, I do! I go through my chiropractor's office and it is part of my physical therapy with chiropractic care and is covered by my insurance. Check with your insurance company for their own rules! But I was getting a massage a month while running and while pregnant. I try to get 1 massage a month. I also schedule a massage a few days after a race because I build up so much more lactic acid because I push myself harder during the race. So I have sore muscles and a lot needs to be worked on and it just feels so good!

Foam Roller: Invest in a foam roller trust me! They are amazing. They might hurt for the first little bit but they are awesome! I roll out my IT band to keep it loose and not too tight. I use a high density hard roller but there are soft rollers out, I just feel it so much more with the high density roller and man there are times I hate doing it but afterwards they are great. For foam roller exercises go here!

Prevention: The biggest thing that can help prevent aches and pains are a good pair of running shoes. A lot of people have aches and pains because they don't have the right running shoes. So find a local running store and get professional fitted for a pair of shoes. The store should look at your running style and how your foot falls and such to determine your shoe. And it might not always be the cutest shoes in the world. And that is ok. I would rather have the right foot ware over cute any day!

Hope this helps!

Happy 3 Months To Collin

Collin turned 3 months old yesterday! He is getting so big, doesn't help that my arms are always sore from PiYo! He really is developing into a social little bug. He loves to coo and talk and just be super cute. He really likes to lay on the charm with his cubby little smile too!

He is such a great little baby! He did regress a little in the sleep dept. this past month. With the 3 month growth spurt he was waking up at 2am to feed. That only lasted for about a week and we are now back up to sleeping straight from about 9:30/10pm until 4am. Then he eats for about 30 min and is back out until 8am. He loves his afternoon nap and will pitch a fit at about 12:30 to go to sleep and is out until about 3:15. Then I have to feed him to get his belly full before my 2 hour block of teaching so he is a happy quiet baby while I am busy.

Mason really started to show jealousy towards Collin this month. He doesn't like being told to wait to do something or for me to do something for him until I am done feeding Collin. He will come up and growl at me and get angry. But then will just sit down and do something else but he is letting me know he isn't happy. He accidentally kneed Collin in the face this month too as he was climbing around, playing around on the bed when I had Collin laying down. It was an accident and he started crying when he understood her really hurt Collin, since Collin was screaming like a banshee! His hurt cry is so sad and scary sounding. So we are really working hard to give Mason his undivided individual time but also trying to teach him patience. It is something that he needs to learn. He often asks for water while I am nursing and I know he can do it himself he just wants me to do it. But I stick to my guns and ask him to either wait or do it himself. (he ends up doing it himself he just wants attention.) Dividing my attention between the two is being more and more difficult. So we are all learning right now!

PiYo Week 4

This was a great week, a hard week but GREAT! I really am loving the PiYo workouts. I feel so strong but not too sore by the end of them or even the days after. Yes I am sore, but not as sore as I have been after other types of workouts. I really think that the flexibility training along with the strength training helps to keep the muscles stretched without getting tight.

I had 3 brand new to me workouts this week, Hardcore on the floor, Drench and Strength Intervals. Hardcore on the floor, it is the FREE BONUS WORKOUT DVD when you order PiYo through a coach like me. It was hard! Very hard. I think I prefer Core more because I pushed myself and had a hard time doing all the exercise. Drench lives up to its name. I will try to get a pix of me after drench, but this last week it was pretty bad and I had to go and shower pretty quick cause we had things to do. Strength Intervals made me feel like the biggest wuss in the world. I had to pull out of moves so quickly because it was just one right after another and my arms were still sore from the previous days. It was just one of those days I just didn't have it. But I still did it and pushed myself. Plus I think that I over did it in Hardcore on the Floor and my chest muscles have really been biting back at me! But here is the thing, I have room for improvement. And I will improve and I look forward to the day when I can finally do the routines and look back and see how far I have come!

Am I getting more flexible? Somedays I think yes, and somedays not sure. I know that I feel like I am and I feel like I am holding myself better in my core in general. I know that my back doesn't hurt as much and I sit up better when I am nursing Collin so I know that this is definitely helping me.

I will say this that I felt so strong this past Saturday when I did do some running. I felt so stable. My legs felt like they could carry me longer and better and I asked a lot out of them especially with the sprinting I did. My core was engaged and my chest was up and my breathing was on point! I am excited to see what I can really do at the race. Even though I haven't trained for the race as much as I would have liked to have I still know that I can do the race and finish it in a pretty decent time. I am aiming for about the same time I had last year. We shall see.

Would I recommend PiYo? Um, yeah! If you are looking for a low impact but serious strength training and stretching exercise then this is it for you. It really targets areas that I personally want to be stronger, ahem my butt and core oh legs and arms and shoulders. I really does it all. I think it is a gradual change though and I know it will lean out muscles. So if you are interested fill out the form below and LET ME KNOW! Even if you can't be in this PiYo test group I know that I will offer others. Let me your email so I can keep in contact with you!

But if you want to be in this group, let me know now! There are only a few spaces left!

August Week 2 Workout Recap

This was the last week before school starts. Most moms are going to be celebrating this week as their kids go back to school. At least I would be when my kids finally start to go. I guess it is bittersweet but still us mommas need a break sometimes don't we! Anyhew I made sure to really kicked my butt into gear this week. Which I am happy to announce that I DID! 

I stuck to the workouts even though they kicked my butt and I couldn't do everything but I sure worked myself. I have needs improvement on my 2 newest workouts that were added this week: Drench and Strength intervals. I am so excited to gauge my strength changes over the next couple of weeks! 

Life as a mom is keeping me pretty busy. I still haven't added running back into the mix, except for on Saturdays and I am still trying to work out a schedule with my hubs on when I can go to his gym during the week. Or hopefully soon I will be able to go back to my gym and it will be easier to do running! 

Currently I am looking into 1/2 marathon training. I am planning on, I guess kinda sorta, looking at doing a 1/2 next spring and will start my 1/2 training in November. I am going to start training for my 10k here in a few weeks so I am excited about that. Race season, here I come! I do know that I will continue to incorporate leg strengthening exercises/weight training during my training because last time I did that (in 2010) I was able to run longer without my body tiring out. So I will be in full training mode so soon! 

Oh and another thing. I was without Shakeology until Wednesday. I could definitely feel a difference in my body, energy and craving levels when I am not drinking it. I was exhausted, and all I wanted to do was stuff my face of sweets and pastries. Workouts were hard and not and I had to really push to get through the workout. Started drinking shakeology on Wednesday and it really takes about 3 days to get it back in your system and to get that energy kick. IT REALLY IS GREAT STUFF! Note to myself, don't run out again! 

Workout Recap: 

Sunday: Rest

Monday: PiYo Sweat

Tuesday: PiYo Hardcore on the floor

Wednesday: PiYo BUNS

Thursday: PiYo Drench

Friday: PiYo Strength Intervals (only able to do about 1/2 so sore and tired from Drench and Buns)

Life of a Busy Mommy!

This past week was CRAZY in the Allen household! It was my first full week back at teaching, last week it was only a partial teaching week. And to top it off Matt was gone for 4 DAYS! I was by myself with the 2 boys for 4 DAYS! Needless to say it got a little stressful and crazy! Both boys were missing Daddy like crazy and Mace was tired of dealing with just me. I didn't pull any hair out, the house survived and we are all in one piece but man I am so thankful that I have my hubs here to help me with the boys regularly because I need that break in the afternoon to just decompress!

It was so cute when Matt got home. Mason just wanted to hold him and hug him and didn't want to go to bed but we promised lots of playing the next day (which he did) just with daddy! Collin was cooing up a storm just to Matt when he saw him. (Matt got home around 9 pm by the way!) Collin was talking to Matt, like trying to have a conversation with him, telling him everything that he missed while he was gone,  and it was so cute!

So back to normal life now, yay! Coming up this week we have my weekly PiYo recap, Collin 3 month post (I know, already), and Running Tips and Tricks! See ya tomorrow!

Also there is still some room left in the PiYo test group! If you are interested let me know!!! Make sure you JOIN my team here!

PiYo Week 3 RE-DO

Now that I have officially redone week 3 I can talk about it! OH MY OH MY How much do I love BUNS! It was awesome! I was sore from the bowlers move for 4 days. 4 DAYS PEOPLE! I haven't been that sore from working out in forever and that is going back to my first week with my personal trainer where he literally kicked my butt and pushed me to my max to see where we start from! But yeah, I felt it like crazy in my thighs for 4 days. Then core the next day, oh boy! IT WORKED ME HARD AND GOOD!

The only workout last week I didn't do is the strength interval on Saturday. My legs were toast after still be sore from BUNS and also from my run with the training program that morning and trying to keep up with MJ! Now she is an inspiring woman who makes me want to push harder every single day! 80+ lbs down and still rocking it in the weight loss dept! LOVE HER and so glad I met her!

Anyhew I am also noticing that I am more flexible. During some after workout stretching I was able to reach further and my legs spread more apart without killing my hamstrings. I totally need my hamstrings looser! I love it when Chalene tells us to lift our tail bone or pop a hip out here or there. I feel the stretching so much more deeply.

Also this was my first week that I kept plank up during the whole routine. I only dropped onto my knees when going to Chaturanga because I am still working on getting my tricep pushup. OUCH! 

I am going into the final week of the first half of PiYo this week and super excited. I got to start it off with SWEAT last night, had to wait for the kiddos to be in bed. But after this week, it gets more difficult I assume because Define upper and lower is gone and it goes into DRENCH and SWEAT a ton! 

---Beginning August 25 I will be hosting a Exclusive PiYo test group on Facebook! Let me know if you are interested in joining my team and group!!! Leave a comment, msg me, email me or click here and click JOIN TEAM! 

RIP Robin Williams

Such sad news on the passing of a great comedian! Robin Williams. He was in so many movies that I really enjoyed watching over and over again! Robin Williams, may you find peach and happiness since you brought so much happiness to so many. You will be missed.

~Mrs. Doubtfire~

~ Aladin as The Genie~

 ~Hook~

 ~Jumanji~

 ~Night at the Museum~