Ginger Tea

I took whole ginger root and cut off about 6 1 inch cubes.  Put the cubes and hot water into the mug and allowed it to sit for a few minutes until cool enough to drink.  Then I added lemon juice.  The original recipe calls for cayenne pepper, but I didn't have any this morning.

The drink is very yummy and refreshing.  I added lemon to taste.  Next time, I'll add hotter water though.

http://www.kimberlysnyder.net/blog/2009/11/27/immunity-tea-with-cayenne-pepper-step-by-step-instructions/

Preparing for a long run

Tomorrow we’ll be doing 6 miles and then we’re having a potluck brunch afterwards.  We’re meeting with the Tri team and people are supposed to bring family and friends.  I want to make sure I’m prepared, so I don’t look bad when running in front of other people.  In particular, I don’t want to have to walk before the finish when my boyfriend is running with me... I'll never hear the end of it haha.  I went to the store to stock up on items to get me ready.  I grabbed coconut water and Gatoraide G2 for electrolytes.  Protein powder to restore my muscles.  A pear and almonds for a snack today.  I also got ginger root and lemon juice because I read a recipe online to make a tea with ginger and lemon.  I’ve also been making the vegetable smoothies in the morning.  They look pretty gross (darkish green in color) but they taste alright.  Today I mixed spinach, blueberries, water, apple, pomegranate juice and Mila.  The Mila is supposed to be really good for you and help your muscles to not get sore after long runs.  I’m still using my sample bag, but I might splurge to get the $55 one month’s supply.  I will let you know how tomorrow’s run goes.

Yes, I'm an avid Gator fan :)

Notes from Mile 5

113 Days left until our Marathon.  We ran 13 miles this week, with 5 miles on Saturday.
I feel like I"ve learned so much even at this early point in our training.  Here are some notes from mile 5:

1.  So much depends on what works for you.  I keep wanting someone to tell me what to eat, how much to drink, what to wear.  Much to my dismay, no one will because running is such an individual thing.  Drink, eat, wear whatever feels best for you when you're training.  I haven't figured out what is best for me on everything yet and I'm sure it will change as we do longer distances.  I have found that eating a piece of bread or some crackers before long runs works well for me.  Too much food on my stomach and I feel sick while running, but a little carbs and a little protein is good.  Other people like coffee, protein shakes, bananas, etc...

2.  Drink a lot of water, but make sure you're replacing electrolytes.  As you drink more water, the more it flushes out the electrolytes.  I drink about 5 24oz glasses of water each day, but I've started supplementing things that replace electrolytes as well.  Pomegranted juice was something I tried this week because it's high in potassium.  I thought it was gross and too expensive - $10 for a bottle!  But I'll keep trying things.  Coconut water is great for electrolyte replacement and I really enjoy it.

3.  Get lots of vitamins.  I've added a veggie shake into my diet.  I combine spinach, lettuce, 1/2 an apple, 1/2 a banana, Mila and water in my Magic Bullet and it makes a delish shake.  It's packed with all sorts of healthy vitamins and I know exactly what's going into it.  However you do it, I think it is very important to have a lot of veggies in your diet.  The Magic Bullet is a fantastic addition to our kitchen, I use it every day becase it makes a single serving, is so simple to clean up and blends pretty much anything.

4.  Get your miles in.  Running during the week has been really important for me in order to get the long run done on Saturdays.  Doing the shorter miles during the week helps build your endurance for the long runs.

5.  Lay low on the alcohol. Last week I drank 2 glasses of red wine on Friday night and I've done it the night before running a few times.  It does not feel good.  Even though I'm only having a little, it is not worth the extra lag I feel the next day.

6.  Having friends to keep you accountable makes a Huge difference.  If I weren't running with Michelle and Kate, I think I may have quit by this point.  Knowing that they're doing their miles, not drinking, eating healthier and working hard is encredibly motivating.

7.  An amazing coach is just as valuable as having friends to run with.  Dinah is an incredible woman. Not only has she done Iron Woman, is training for the Nations Tri, has children and a job, but she is out with us two days a week, emailing, encouraging us and has a great attitude about all of it.  Having such a positive and involved coach has really helped all 3 of us to continue working hard.

It was tough, but I got all of my miles in this week.  I ran at lunch on Monday.  Doing 3 miles and getting back to work in 1 hour is impossible.  Tuesday, my boyfriend ran with me, which was nice of him.  I'd really like to get faster so it's at least a challenge for him, I hope I can.  I find it is very hard to take encouragement from your significant other.  I am trying to learn how to communicate what I need better, because he tries very hard to keep me going.  I used the rain on Wednesday as an excuse to skip my run and did fundraising stuff instead.  It wasn't until Friday that I made up the miles at lunch and worked late to make up the time.  The 4 donuts I ate before running was a bad idea.  Getting the miles in seems to make a big difference.  I want to make sure I start doing Yoga more too.  It's great for stretching.

Today we ran 5 miles.  I thought I was ready to walk after mile 1 and was certain I couldn't do all 5.  I kept pace just fast enough to where Michelle and Kate didn't get too far ahead of me, but the humidity made it difficult to breathe and tougher to run.  When the girls stopped for the bathroom, I kept going by myself to finish 2.5 miles.  About that time, Dinah came to run with me.  I thought I was done at 2.5 miles, no more running, I couldn't do it.  Running with someone that I know can out pace and out distance me was so motivating.  I finished the entire 5 miles non-stop!!  I did not want to run today, was certain I couldn't do 5 miles, but I was wrong.  With the right amount of encouragement and drive, you can push yourself harder and longer than you think you can.

Bowl-A-Thon

So we have the basics planned for our Bowl-A-Thon. Like I mentioned before, Michelle and I are on the Advertising/Marketing team. I created the flyers for the event - one big one to be used as a poster and a smaller one to be handed out. I really enjoyed being creative with this project and I'm very happy with how it turned out. I didn't use a template or anything, check it out:

I also created a website where you can purchase tickets to the event:  LLSBowlAThon.blogspot.com

Hope you can make it!!!

A week or two behind

I love that in my last post I declared I would be better about writing immediately after running and now it’s been at least a week or two since writing.  Haha, oops.

Last week, I realized that I’ve significantly increased my calorie intake (using the marathon as my excuse), but I’ve decreased the amount of calories I’m burning per day.  Running a mile burns about 100 calories.  We’ve been doing 1-2 miles per day, meaning that the extra 500 calories I’ve been consuming are not being burned off by my 200 calorie run lol.  I decided last week to add gym classes back into my workout.  I didn’t do great on my running schedule for the week.  I did a total body class on Monday.  Tuesday I ran 2 miles, went to a 1 hour vinyasa yoga class, and then ran the fastest 1 mile I’ve ever done with the team after work.  That’s great, but then I didn’t run at all the rest of the week.  Let me tell you, I felt the difference on Saturday! 

I thought the point was to make sure we got all of our miles in for the week.  What I realize is that it’s important to be running each day.  I was only two miles short of my weekly goal, but Saturday I felt like someone put lead in my arms and legs.  I barely ran a mile before I stopped to walk.  I was so negative and grouchy.  I don’t know how much I actually ran, but I don’t feel like it was very much.  Poor Michelle tried to encourage me, but it fell on deaf ears.  In addition, my feet were hurting.  Actually, I think most of my body was hurting – shins, knees, shoulders, wrists, ankles, stomach… everything.  I would run for a few minutes, then walk, then run, the entire 5 miles.  My hands were swollen like balloons.  I was pretty disappointed in myself, especially after we ran 4 miles no problem a few weeks ago.

Friday night, I had 2 glasses of wine.  Before our run on Saturday, I drank a bunch of Want More Energy? to try to balance out the drinks, ate a banana and drank Mila soaked in coconut water.  I don’t usually do well when I eat before running, but I’m trying to do it now that we’re adding some distance to our runs.  Dinah mentioned that your hands swell when you don’t have enough electrolytes, which is why I was drinking Want More Energy?.  I reviewed the nutrition content when we got home and I was wrong, again.  While this powder is packed with Vitamin C and B vitamins, it contains very little electrolytes, such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium.  This means I need to find an electrolyte supplement.

When we got home, I was absolutely exhausted.  I slept from 10am until 2 pm, got up and went to the pool for a bit and was ready to lay back down by 9pm.  On Sunday, I got up around 7am and went for a relaxing bike ride all around town.  Found a beautiful park and enjoyed some time taking photos of random plants and birds.  I met my boyfriend for brunch and enjoyed reading a book outside.  Again today, I was exhausted by 3pm and had to take a 30 minute nap.  By 9pm, I could barely stay awake.  My body is still pretty sore as well – my shins, ankles and right arm especially.  I’m not sure why I’m so tired and sore lately (I didn’t work out that hard), but I’m hoping it passes soon.

First time past 3 miles

We just finished our first 4 mile run this morning. It's the longest I've ever done and I was able to run the entire thing!! In high school, I was on the cross country team. I don't I ever comleted a 5k without walking, even after months of training. We've now been working for about 4 weeks and I'm already at 4 miles! I'm very excited.  This morning before our run, I took Want More Energy? (a vitamin supplement), made an effort to drink more water and ate a piece of bread before today's run. Michelle and I were both able to do the whole thing and kept up good conversation while doing it.   I'd like to increase my speed some. I am averaging 12 minute miles. However, I am able to keep running while at this speed, so I'm not sure if I should.

We had a nutrition clinic afterwards and learned about a product called Mila. I'm interested to try it with some coconut water, which I am going to start drinking more of. Apparently, coconut water is better for hydrating than water... no wonder people always tell me to take it for my hangovers! Guess what I'll be having before going out next time?!?! Haha, actually, since we've started training, I have very little time or desire to drink alcohol. It costs too much the next day. Maybe Saturday nights though, because Sunday is a rest day. I've definitely become an old person on Fridays though! But today, that paid off :)