Beach in January- be jealous

Before dinner Friday night.

They love pictures with Mommy.

 His smile makes my heart melt.

Saturday on the Island.

We rented the Barney Rubble cars.

Hubby never misses an opportunity to coach.

Love this.

Family shot.

Baby gators. 

My finger pointing at the gators. 

Ever seen gators in real life?

Yes, and I've even been chased by one!! Not a good feeling.

Fears

I had to get some medical tests done today and shamefully, couldn't complete the last one. The last test, I had to lay still and was scooted under an x-ray type machine. I had to be under there 82 minutes. I am not joking.

To top things off, I had to fast and all I could think about was how hungry I was and how long this was going to take. I couldn't keep my eyes open because my head was hurting and it hurt to look at the picture on the ceiling. So I closed my eyes and prayed.

At the end of the 82 minutes, the tech said I had to go another 30 minutes and she was going to give me a shot to help the test go better.

THIRTY MORE MINUTES? I said ok.

Ten minutes into it, I told her politely that I had to stop. I couldn't do it another minute. I have clausterphobia, and although I did ok the first part, I couldn't do it any longer.

She was annoyed and said I should have told her before she started the second test. I thought I would be ok, I just had a panic attack all of the sudden at the thought of this huge machine over me and what if I couldn't get out.

She obviously hasn't had this sort of anxiety or else she would have been more understanding. Do you have any fears that may have stopped you from doing something?

Do you have any phobias? How do you cope?

On another note, picking up my little guy from school made things better.

Celeb mom spotlight- Brooke Burke

I have always been amazed at how Brooke Burke looks so good, even after having 4 children.

(Source)

Seriously?

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When I first saw her, it was on the pages of Venus Swimwear magazine. In an interview on Askmen.com, she talks about eating clean.

*****

What kind of diet and workout regimen have you followed to stay so stunning after having four children?

BB : Oh, thank you. Well, I’ve always had a really healthy lifestyle. I haven’t changed anything during my pregnancies or following. I try to eat often; I try to eat smart, and clean, and healthy. I also love to cook, so I make a lot of homemade food -- a lot of fresh food -- [and] a lot of gourmet food at home, but I’ve always been pretty healthy.        

                               

*****

(Source)

*****

In another interview she talks about carving out time for her workouts.

How often do you work out?

I try to get to a Pilates Plus class, which is an intense, fast-paced workout that's done on a special reformer machine, at least three times a week. I also go to the gym a couple of times. I do 15 minutes on the treadmill, walk­ing at a 3.5-mile-per-hour speed and a 15-grade incline, and then I do the 45-minute head-to-toe workout I designed with trainer Gregory Joujon-Roche for one of my new DVDs. I don't think you need more than an hour to do cardio and full-body toning. I don't have three hours a day to devote to my body, but I do have an hour five days a week.

What's your diet secret?

I don't ever skip meals. If you let yourself get too hungry, you'll start craving sugary, fatty foods, and you'll make bad choices. (Source)

*****

She's a mom, of 4 kids and works and still finds time to take care of herself. I know, I know....she's a celebrity and has the money for trainers and maybe even a private chef. Well you know what? So does Oprah. I think as women, especially moms, we have a tendency to give excuses as to why we don't have the time to work out.

The truth is, we all have the same 24 hours in each day. We all have challenges that we may have to overcome just to get to the gym. We all make choices as to what goes into our bodies.

I think that's the most important key, because at the end of the day, it's not about how much you work out. It's what you eat. Even celebrities have to worry about what they eat and make a conscious effort to eat healthy.

What are your thoughts? Do celebrities have it easier when it comes to eating healthy?

Do you think too many moms use the "baby weight" excuse as to why they can't lose weight?

Motivate Me and an octupus??

Go check out Running to be Skinny's blog today. Jessica has been featuring bloggers and friends on her special "Motivate Me Monday" post.

She wanted me to share my weight loss story, so go and read all about it!!

*****.

My husband is an artist, among other things. He painted the octopus. It's a 6ft x 8 ft. canvas and is hanging in a restaurant that he, and another artist friend painted with 3D murals.

3D mural in a dome ceiling.

Another 3D mural.

Can you paint or draw?

I can only draw stick figures.

What is your workout for today?

Mondays usually entail a sweaty spin session and weights, but I am taking a rest day.

Returning after an injury

I have been battling IT band issues for quite some time. I've had two sessions of A.R.T., and believe it's helping me. The million dollar question is: Am I well enough to run the marathon this coming Sunday?

Let me catch you up on my training. I have been training since October for the ING Miami marathon. I ran a half marathon on November 20, then got into my super long runs in December. After running 20 miles on December 31, I felt good. The next week, I could feel the injury coming back. I rested about a week then ran in my neighborhood. I ran 1.8 miles and then...PAIN.

The next week, I had therapy and was able to run over 4 miles at a time pain free. I missed my long run that weekend (last weekend) because I was sick.

Fast foward to this week. I ran 4.4 miles on Tuesday, 3 miles on Wednesday, 7 miles on Thursday, and 10 miles on Saturday. I didn't feel any pain during my 10 mile run and actually felt like I could have kept going.

The Problem:
Due to my low miles this month, can I run the marathon without getting injured? Do I just run the half for fun? (Because I know I can't PR at this point) Should I get a refund on the room and try to run a race in February or March? I am so confused.

I found a really good blog by a physical therapist about returning to running after an injury. Read about it here.

(source)

I have another A.R.R. session this week. Hopefully she can shed some light on what I should do. What would you do??

Wordless Wednesday

We adopted a dog. He's the best.

Therapy hurts but is helping.

I am running further. At this point I still don't know if I'm able to complete just the half marathon. Time will tell.

Friday Moves- Lean Legs workout

Who says the Brazilians are the only ones who know how to lift your rear?

I have to get this out of my head and on to paper. This workout will have your glutes, hams, and quads on fire. I did this on Tuesday after my 3.5 mile run. Two days later, I am still feeling it.

1.) On the Smith machine, I did a warm-up of one set of 10, then did 3x10 with 50lbs total. This move targets your glutes, which is what most people neglect in the gym. For runners, this is a good move to do because you need strong glutes to keep you from getting injured. Especially the IT band.

(Source)

Instead of resting, I worked on my shoulders. I started out with some lateral raises.

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2.) I did another super-set with glutes and shoulders. I got on the angled leg press machine and did 3x12 with 90lbs total. The way to target your glutes on this machine is to put your feet together and

don't let your knees go past your toes. Also, never lock your knees.

Superset with..

Upright rows. 3x12

3.) Next, I went over to do the butt blaster. 3x10

Superset with.....

Hip adduction 3x15 with 135lbs.

(Source)

4.) Stiff-legged deadlifts, 3x12

(Source)

Superset with....

Stability ball wall squats. 3x12, no weights.

(Source)

 

Do this workout I guarantee you'll be cursing me everytime you go to the potty.

 

What are your favorite leg moves? 

What I Ate Wednesday

I decided to do my first ever food journal for the day. I won't be doing this every week, but I thought it would be good to keep me accountable. Keep in mind I took some of the pics with my phone and I am not a food blogger.... which means, my photography skills are less than stellar.

Breakfast (6-7am): coffee, with half and half (no picture)
1/2 plainoats with a splash of skim milk (no picture)
3 egg whites

Post-workout snack (10:30am): Green monster

Late lunch (1:30pm): 1/2 cup Chobani yogurt topped with a handful of granola.

handful of almonds

Afternoon snack (3:00pm): handful of almonds, a few sunflower seeds

Dinner (5:30): grilled chicken, roasted broccoli, quinoa

 Dessert (7:45): Yogurt Mountain! This was my reward for sitting through an hour and a half meeting for my daughter's upcoming Lacrosse season.

I was busy working in the office at home today and really didn't have time to make super healthy snacks, so I just grabbed what was ready to eat. I should have incorporated more fruit, or paired the almonds with 2 hardboiled egg whites. 

I also drank a ton of water. I drink about 32 ounces during a workout, and sip on water all day long. Last night, I also made some hardboiled eggs to keep on hand. I am making some protein bars today. It's good to keep clean eats readily available to prevent you from eating processed foods.

Get your Schwaggle on

I happened to find this via Twitter. All I saw was .......compression socks........50% off......and it caught my attention. Indeed it's true, get these compression socks for 50% off! One can't have too many compression socks, right? I only have one pair, that I actually bought with a groupon and they were half off.

What is Schwaggle?

"Schwaggles offer you access to carefully crafted experiences, adventures, services and products tailored to your active lifestyle at insider prices that Active.com negotiates for you, usually anywhere from 30% to 70% off the price for non-Schwagglers (i.e. mere mortals)."

I am a sucker for a bargain. If you like bargains too, sign up here.

*This post is not sponsored and is completely my opinion.

The Daily Mile

I love this website! I just started using it recently and I want to be faithful about using it because I can compare runs and see my progress or lack thereof. I haven't updated my training page but will be putting some workouts on there, more for my reference so that I don't have Fitness magazines all over the place.

Check it out, and friend me. You can see my my workout details. Here's my profile.

One of my favorite features is the stats at the bottom where you can see how many TV's you've powered and how many donuts you've burned. My total for donuts? 705! I don't even eat donuts. They make me sick. blech.

Do you keep track of your workouts? If so, what do you use?

ING Miami training update- IT Band injury

I've been training for the ING Miami marathon on January 29. It is 3 weeks away. I ran 20 miles on Dec. 24. I felt good after my run. I took an ice bath and drank chocolate milk. I think the two really aided in my recovery. I have been trying this combo for the last few weeks with long runs.

I run 3 days a week. There are a few reasons why:

1. My body needs recovery in between runs.
2. I will get bored with running more than 3 x's a week.
3. I prefer to run early in the morning, so I have to split mornings with the Hubby, who runs 3 mornings also.
4. I am injury prone.

Here's my monthly mileage for the past few months. Keep in mind I started training for a half marathon in mid-July. This overlapped with ING training. I started ING training in October.

September miles: 76
October miles: 93
November miles: 89
December miles:  120

In the past, I ran only one 20 mile run before my marathons. It never failed, when I hit the 20 mile mark on a run, injury was soon to come.

Last week, my leg was feeling tight. I ran 9 miles Tuesday, 8 miles on Thursday and was supposed to run 16 miles on Saturday. I ended up running 6 and walking 2 on Saturday. I told myself I wasn't going to run for a week. That lasted a whole 5 days. I wanted to see if I could run some sort of long-ish run on Saturday.

So I went for a test run tonight and got just under 2 miles in. Then the knee pain started.

I have an appointment with someone who performs active release therapy (ART), on Monday. I am so looking foward to this. I hope she can give me hope and relief.

Here are my long runs for the past few weeks. I have been using a plan from RW smart coach as a guide.

10/29- 13 miles
11/6- 14 miles
11/12- 7 miles
11/20- 13.1 (half marathon)
11/27- 17 miles
12/2- 19 miles
12/10- 8 miles
12/17- 18 miles
12/23- 20 miles
12/31- 6 miles (was supposed to be 16)

The reason I am prone to this injury is they way my legs are made. "If a biomechanical defect is present, such as bow legs or pronation in the feet, the I.T.B. rubs against the edge of the femur with more force, causing greater irritation and pain." (source)

Worst case scenario, I have to drop back to the half or sit this one out. No big deal. It could be worse. I could be having a bad hair day like this little guy.

Have you had IT Band injury? Any experience with ART?