Easy. High Power Snack

With marathon training comes the need to eat more calories than usual. In a 5 mile run and stretch, I burn over 1000 calories! Last time I ran a marathon, I ate with no thought, and I actually gained weight. This time, not so much! I will not allow that to happen! This is going to require me to eat healthy high calorie foods. Today, I mixed up a snack that I'm loving so I thought I'd share!

1/4 cup Trader Joe's dried bing cherries (no sugar added)

2 T black walnuts, also from Trader Joe's

The calorie count is 226 calories according to myfooddiary.com.

Go here for more information on the anti-inflammatory properties of bing cherries. Black walnuts are a good source of Omega 3's, so overall I feel like I'm getting a powerful, healthy snack out of these 226 calories!

Week 4 Marathon Training

It is now week 4 in the marathon training, and it's starting to step up a bit. My schedule for the week is listed as:

Rest, 3 mi, 4 mi, 3 mi, Rest, 9 mi, Cross Train

After doing some research and getting some advice, I've decided that I will allow myself from time to time to substitute plyo work for one of my shorter runs. In the beginning, INSANITY workouts make more sense because they only require 40 minutes of my time, and a 3-4 mile run is going to take me 30-40 minutes. As my mileage increased, I'll work in one of the phase 2 INSANITY workouts or Plyo X from the P90X program.

I've also decided that one of my rest days is going to be a yoga day instead of pure rest. This week (and most weeks), that day is today! I didn't have school today because of MLK Day, so I scheduled a massage for 9 AM. I won my fantasy football this year (2 years in a row, thank you very much), so I had an extra $250 I didn't expect to have. Woo hoo! I treated myself to a few massages so I can keep my body in tip top shape during my training. After I got back, I had some extra water (very important after massages), and then I did a 25 minute Rodney Yee yoga routine. It's called Yoga for Flexibility, and I love it! I am now nice and relaxed, plus my muscles are stretched out!

Tomorrow I will get back to my running with a 3-4 mile run. Last week was a successful week, and I felt super strong like I was really building up some endurance. Let's hope this week is just as great!

Running 3 Days a Week?

So I'm thinking I'm going to change my running program slightly. It has me running 4 days per week, and that cuts out a lot of time for other workouts! I'm seriously considering substituting one of my short during the week runs with an Insanity workout or maybe Plyo X. Then I'm getting my heart rate up to a running level, but it's a different workout so I won't get bored. There are plenty of 3 day per week running programs out there, so I'm thinking it should be fun. I of course will never skimp on my long runs because that is a big part of the program! Can't run 26 miles if you haven't done your 18 mile run too!

Runners out there, any thoughts on occasionally subbing plyo for one of my short runs?

Above Freezing!

Today I fit in my 4 mile run for the week in the beautiful, MILD 39 degree Pittsburgh weather. It felt like spring! Oh so sad... :) There were actually a ton of runners out there. You'd have thought it actually was spring!

I mapped out a course for myself using the US Track and Field website. I know there are other sites, but this was the first I used so I prefer it. Anywho, I mapped out a nice 4 mile loop that started in my neighborhood and made its way into a neighborhood right next door. What I failed to remember is that this other neighborhood is up a fairly large hill, so for a good 20 minutes I was seriously running up hill. Not only was it up hill, but I'm pretty sure people from Pittsburgh have learned how to walk on snow, so they just don't bother to shovel. So I was running up hill on snowy sidewalks. Oddly enough, I'm used to that although it does slow you down a bit. I actually tripped once, and it was on DRY LAND! What a clutz! I didn't fall, but I seemed to be quite stable in the slush. I guess I'm a cold weather beast at heart!

All in all, good run today. I stretched for 12-ish minutes afterwards with the help of my cat. It's one of his favorite activities. I sit down to stretch and he runs over and sits next to me. Too cute!

Hope everyone is doing well with their health journeys! Be well!

Week 3 Workouts

So far week 3 is going well! I did one of my 3 mile runs yesterday, and (as advised in a comment) I made it an interval run. When I trained for one of my half marathons, I was really good about doing speed workouts and tempo runs, and I definitely felt the improvement in my running. I'm going to try to do as much of that as I can during this training program too. I ran just under 3 miles in some freezing cold weather, but I felt strong, so it was great!

Today I decided to do some cross training instead of running because I needed a bit of a rest. I did a total body weighted workout in my living room while I watched Dr. Oz. Much more of what I was in the mood for! I'll get some running in tomorrow!

Also trying to get my food back on track... that's going pretty well! I had to rough it a bit the other day before I made it to the grocery store, which meant random leftovers, but now all is well!

I can't believe week 3 is almost over! The mileage is going to get long and serious really soon!

Happy New Year!!

Okay, I know it's already January 11, so the new years wish is a bit late. I have literally been away since before Christmas though and I just returned last night. I am so excited to be home! My vacation was quite nice, but it was also very, very busy. I went to see my parents for Christmas, then flew to Florida to see my grandparents, then flew to Cali to see my boyfriend and his family. I finished the week in San Francisco networking with companies in the area to see if I could perhaps get a job at one of them eventually. After all that, being locked up in my toasty warm apartment with my cats is AWESOME! I do have class today though, so it is back to reality!

While I was away, I started my marathon training. The first two weeks went something like this:

Rest, 3 miles, 3 miles, 3 miles, rest, 6 miles, Cross Training

Rest, 3 miles, 3 miles, 3 miles, rest, 7 miles, Cross Training

I didn't do the workouts EXACTLY as above because I just need more of my weight lifting than that is allowing. I definitely did two 3 miles runs each week and my long run. I also did a lot of walking with my dad and my boyfriend, and I hit the hotel gym a couple times and used some free weights. I have not weighed myself since I got back... ugh reality! I was not awful but I had my fair share of beverages and yummy food. I am going grocery shopping today to stock up my fridge on healthy, wonderful food. Can't wait!

This week's marathon training looks like this:

Rest, 3 miles, 4 miles, 3 miles, rest, 5 miles, Cross Training

I'm a bit sore from my 7 miles run on Saturday, so I plan to do some yoga today to warm up and stretch out my muscles. I'm cool with the running mileage on the other days, but I'd love to throw in one full body strength workout. I'll make sure to get in one real rest day as well because that is going to be very important. Last bit of really important activity is food journaling... I'll be burning a lot of calories running, so I need to make sure I properly refuel my body so I can keep up with the workouts. Plus I don't want to use running as an excuse to pig out! When I ran my first marathon, I gained weight because I just ate whatever I felt like! Not good!

Hope everyone is having a healthy start to the year!

Short and Sweet

I am waiting for a flight from CA back to PA (it's going to be a looooooooong trip), and I can finally post a short note! My Christmas and New Year's were awesome, and it is now back to reality! I was good about keeping up with my running and workouts over break. I did more running than anything, but I spent a week at a hotel recently, so I used their gym for some free weight activity. I am looking forward to getting back to my normal life!

Back to school on Monday for my last semester of graduate school... need to find a job! We're hoping to find good jobs in the SF bay area (biotech for me), so keep your fingers crossed for us!