Three Things Thursday: Heart Health, Choice, New Yoga Book

#1 Hearth Health - Today's  Daily Challenge is to Review the warnings signs of a heart attack. This one really hit home because when my dad had a heart attack a few years ago it was the scariest time of my life. I read all about the symptoms then, but this was a good reminder to review them again. It is scary to know that women can have a heart attack and not even know it because there are often no symptoms or the symptoms may be dismissed as something else. Please take a moment today to review these links. It may save your life or that of someone you love someday.

The most common symptom of a heart attack in both men and women is chest pain or discomfort that can be mild or strong, though not ALL attacks start with chest pain. Women may experience different warning signs and symptoms. Look over these signs of heart attack: http://bit.ly/HeartSigns (If you're a woman--or have loved ones who are women--read this page also: http://bit.ly/WomensHearts) 

#2 Choices - The other day before we headed to my sister's baby shower, Jason and I were talking about how there would probably be all this tasty but unhealthy food and candy there, and I probably would not be able to resist. I jokingly said to him, "I have plenty of self control; I may just choose not to exercise it!" This made us laugh, but it is a very powerful statement and realization. I AM in control of my body and my actions. If I make a bad decisions about what to eat or skipping a workout because I am lazy, it is by choice, not compulsion. It may seem like a force outside myself is making, but that is a cop-out and I do not accept it. I will take responsibility for my actions and suffer the consequences. The good thing is that making the right choices more often has become way easier because I feel awful (physically, and mentally) when I don't and the feeling is so much greater when I eat right and exercise. 

#3 New Yoga Book - I've been doing yoga with DVDs and YOGAmazing podcasts, but by now I know most of the poses that work for me, so now I can do it from memory and hold each pose for as long or as little as I'd like. I feel like my yoga practice is reaching a new level where I can start stringing together poses to make my own routines, so I bought The Athlete's Pocket Guide to Yoga. One thing that I liked about this book is that it lists a series of short routines with how long to hold the pose in terms of breaths and it says this "The breath guideline is merely a suggestion; hold the poses until you feel even side to side." I love this and I feel is what I've been doing when I do yoga for runners on my own from memory. I try to hold everything for a minimum of 3 breaths, but the poses I really like or that are really beneficial I hold for as long as it feels good. It's awesome!

MBE: Keeping it Fun in Extreme Weather

This Weeks Monday Brain Exchange Question: 

Do you deal with any types of extreme weather where you live? Heat warnings, a lot of snow, frequent tornados? How do you keep your workouts fresh and fun when you are stuck indoors?
I am thankful that Florida does not experience very extreme weather, except for lots of rain during hurricane season, and it get pretty hot and humid during the summer. The rain is pretty predictable, so I can usually plan my runs around it. During the summer, I get up early to finish my runs before it gets too hot/humid. In the winter, I can sleep in because it's cool enough to run later in the day. LOVE his!

I love exercising outdoors, and avoid the gym like the plague, so I've acquired the right gear to maximize my outdoor workouts. When I absolutely must exercise indoors, I focus on yoga. I have a ton of 15-20 min yoga podcasts from http://yogamazing.com/ that I can rotate between to keep things fresh. I also have some yoga and kickboxing videos I can do for more variety and indoor cardio. This morning I started the day with a fitdeck workout. These are the perfect tool to keep your workouts fresh because even if you do the same deck every day (I have 4) it will still be different if you shuffle the deck. For more resources, check out my Home Workouts Page.

Friday Five: Whole Wheat Recipes

I've been trying to follow the real food rules in everything I eat, which means eating 100% whole wheat and grains, no refined grains or sweeteners, and limiting processed food to things that contain 5 ingredients or less that I can actually pronounce. This means that most store-bought breads, crackers and doughs are out of the question, so I've started making my own. This is not nearly as hard as I thought it would be, and actually quite fun.

Below are my top 5 favorite recipes to replace often bought items. They are all 100% whole wheat.  The great thing about making your own "real food" is that they require very few ingredients so they are super easy to prepare. 

1. whole wheat biscuits - I've never made biscuits of any kind, and these are both healthier (they still have a lot of butter) and delicious. I make mini ones and freeze them so they reheat really nicely.
2. pizza dough - I use my bread machine to knead the dough for me, and after letting it rest I roll it out onto a baking stone. I recently bought a pizza roller to make it even easier, but it's not required.
3. pie crust - I made this to make my own quiche and it's so quick and tasty.
4. pasta - this recipe is for ravioli, but the same dough can be used to make any pasta shape you want, just roll it out thinner. I don't have a pasta machine, so I use a rolling pin. These also freeze well and cook super quick.
5. crackers - I love crackers and thought I would have to do without or only eat triscuits for the rest of my life because finding 100% whole wheat crackers at Publix is no easy feat. I gave these a try and was shocked at the results. I used all 100% flour, spices to taste (e.g. rosemary and salt), and rolled it out as thin as possible. They are amazing!

Also see - Friday Five: Vegetarian Recipes

Daily Challenge by MeYou Health

I joined the Daily Challenge by MeYou Health because I love challenges =) They really motivate me to better myself when I can check things I've done off a list.

From their site:

The Daily Challenge is a social well-being experience that gives you the opportunity to positively impact your life every day by doing simple daily challenges and sharing the experience with your personal connections -- all while you earn points, collect stamps and achieve new levels.

I don't want to spam anyone so I didn't send out any invites, but if anyone decides to do it I'd love to connect and follow along. The challenges include all aspects of well being, such as emotional health, physical health, and even financial health, which is awesome.

Yesterday's challenge was to

... include at least one food that contains omega-3 fatty acids like walnuts, ground flaxseed, or cold-water fish like salmon, tuna, and herring. Some fruits and vegetables like cantaloupe, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, and spinach contain omega-3s too.

It was great to confirm that I already incorporate this into my diet with flaxseed and spinach. Upon seeing "ground flaxseed" on the list, I wondered why I never see "whole flaxseeds" in recipes, so I googled it and found this:

Most nutrition experts recommend ground flaxseed because your body is better able to digest it. Whole flaxseed may pass through your intestine undigested, which means you won't get all the health benefits.

I should have looked this up long ago. We've been using whole flaxseeds in our granola all this time, so last night added them grounded to our latest batch of granola.

Today's challenge was to request a copy of my credit report, which you can get for free every 12 months from https://www.annualcreditreport.com/ I've been meaning to do this again for a while, but always put it off, so this was just the push I needed. There were no surprises. yay!

3 Things Thursday: Running Love, Cycling Savvy, Yoga and Core

This is a slightly longer than usual 3 things thursday to make up for my slacking on posting lately. I've just not been motivated thinking I didn't have much to say, but I guess I was wrong.

#1 - Running Love

My running has been great lately, and I've even done a few runs on back to back days. No worries, I've been  listening to my body very closely and easing the pace or distance as needed. I've been doing really well on my short runs, and it looks like my new easy pace is 11:30 mm (without walk breaks); it used to be 12 - 12:30. Most of my short runs have been sub-11 and long runs sub-13, so I'm thrilled with that. The cool weather is certainly helping.

I've also been building my base and ran 10 miles @ 12 mm 2 weeks ago. I'll be tackling another 10 miles this Sunday with my friend Jen, who is training for her first half marathon! I'm so excited for her and to be part of her journey. I'm also the captain for our Corporate 5K team this year, and we've been training together after work every Monday and Wednesday. We already have 10 signed up! My goal this year is 40 :)

I'm tentatively running the Orange Blossom Half Marathon on 3/6 if our car is fixed, if not I'll keep maintaining my base by running 6-10 mile long runs each week and work on speed. I plan to do a 10K in March, a few 5Ks throughout the summer, and maybe a duathlon or two before beginning Marathon training in June.

I ran the Lady Track Shack 5k on Saturday and missed a PR by 20s, finishing in 32:30. Read the race report on Dailymile. I was a little disappointed because I felt like I gave up when I realized I would not meet my goal of finishing in 31 minutes. By the time I realized I could still PR (32:10), it was too late to push harder. I tried, but came up 20s shorts. I haven't race a 5K in a LONG time, so I'm over it and will try again soon.

#2 - Cycling Savvy

On Saturday I also taught my first Cycling Savvy class. Since I had the race in the morning, Jason and Rodney helped with the bike handling skills class in the morning, then Lisa  and I helped with the road tour in the afternoon. It was a lot of fun and very rewarding. I taught at least half of the features, and Keri filled in on the harder ones and any key details I forgot to mentioned. 

This is such a great class to empower bicyclists to ride on the road, and I am thrilled to be able to be part of the team spreading the word. If you are in the Orlando area, check out the site for details and register for the next class on March 11 & 12.

#3 - Yoga and Core 

With all this running I've been doing, I really need to take care of my body to avoid injury. I've been neglecting yoga, my core and strength training -- basically anything that is not running. I know being more flexible and having a strong core will really help my running, specially on long runs. 

So this week I recommitted to making me a priority.  I rediscovered this quote while reading my blog archives, and it's a really good reminder:

There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when it is convenient. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results. - Kenneth Blanchard

I am trying to make yoga a part of my daily routine. The past few days I woke up early to do yoga before leaving for work and it's been awesome; it is a the perfect way to start my day. I've also been doing yoga when I get home, specially after a run. These are usually 15-20 min sessions, but they really help. I still also stretch throughout the day when I have a few minutes, such as while waiting for the bus or heating up my lunch. I am slowly incorporating core and strength training too, mainly various crunches, yoga and push ups. 

Race Report: Lady Track Shack 5K

This was my first race of 2011. It is an all women's race and a fundraiser for breast cancer. I wore my new blue running skirt, black top, and black knee high socks. I biked to the race as my warm up, then walked and jogged for a few minutes before the start.

With almost 1800 participants, it was a very crowded start and I probably ran more than 3.1 miles with all the weaving around because I started too far back. The route reminded me of the Watermelon 5K. It was scenic, but I did not care for all the bricks. I missed a PR by 20 seconds, finishing in 32:30. That's not bad considering how crowded it was, byt I was a little disappointed because I felt like I gave up when I realized I would not meet my goal of finishing in 31 minutes. By the time I realized I could still PR (32:10), it was too late to push harder. I haven't race a 5K in a LONG time, so I'm over it and will try again soon. I still hate 5Ks =P 

• Clock - 34:32 
• Chip - 32:30 
• Overall - 561 / 1795 
• AG - 91 / 257
• Splits - 11:12 - 10:28 - 10:01 - 52s 
• Intervals -  2/1

January 2011 Recap

I've been meaning to post all kinds of things, but I've just been super busy running, cycling, cooking from scratch, and becoming a cycling savvy instructor. I'll try to get those posts up soon, including an update on my progress on the 101 Things lists, healthy eating/cooking, and life without a car. In the meantime, here are my January stats.

Goals/Races for February 2011

• Lady Track Shack 5K
• Teach my first Cycling Savvy Class

Accomplishments

• Became a Cycling Savvy Instructor
• Set up Corporate 5K Team and began team training

January Stats

• walk = 40 miles
• run = 58 miles
• longest run = 10 miles
• # of runs = 15
• bike = 148 miles
• longest ride = 16 miles
• total = 246 miles / 36.5 hrs (avg 1.2 hrs/day)

2011 Goals Progress

To be on track, percentages should be around 8-9%

• Run/walk = 98 / 1100 (avg 98/mo; 25/wk; 3/day; 9%)
• Bike = 148 / 2000 (avg 148/mo; 37/wk; 5/day; 7%)
• Car = ? (will update later)
• Home cooked meals = 94% (6/9 out)
• 101 Thing = 1/40 (3%)
• Books = 0/12 (0%)

2011 Goals and Preliminary Race Schedule

2011 Goals

• Run/walk 1100 miles (run 700) = 92(58)/mo; 21(14)/wk; 3/day
• Bike 2000 miles = 167/mo; 39/wk; 6/day
• Run a 5K in 31 minutes (or PR)
• Run 2nd Marathon
• Complete an olympic distance duathlon
• Use car less than 4000 miles = 333/mo; 77/wk
• Restaurant food budget = $50/mo; $12/wk
• Cook 90% of my meals (restaurant meals = 9/mo; 2/wk)
• Complete 40 items from 101 Thing list (for a total of 75)
• Read 12 books

Tentative 2011 Racing Schedule
I haven't registered for any 2011 races yet, but below are the ones I am considering. The plan is to emphasize local races that are within biking distance, or races I've never done before to get the new bling. There are a few repeats because they are close to home or a rare distance. Obviously I won't do everything listed here since some are on the same day, but I'm keeping my options open for now :)

• 02.05 - Lady Track Shack 5K
• 02.19 - Run Around the Pines 5K
• 02.19 - UCF Adventure Race
• 03.06 - Orange Blossom Half Marathon
• 03.12 - Catch Me if You Can 5K
• 03.20 - Gator Olympic Duathlon
• 03.26 - Winter Park Road Race 10K
• 04.14 - Corporate 5K
• 05.15 - Bay to Breakers
• June - Sept: Clermont Tri, Du or 5K
• 10.30 - Daytona Beach Half Marathon
• 11.06 - NYC Marathon 
• 11.27 - Space Coast Marathon (if not doing NYC)

2010 Recap: Goals

Goal	Status
Complete at least 30 items from my 101 things in 1001 days list.	Yes! I've completed 35 items so far, and have others in progress. I changed my approach to this a bit from the original plan, but it is still serving it's purpose well. I'll go into more details in a separate post.
Complete my first marathon!	Yes! Read the race report. It was an amazing experience and I cannot wait to do it again. I applied for the NYC marathon lottery again, and if I do not get in I hope to run the Space Coast Marathon in November.
Complete my first olympic triathlon	No. I only did one sprint triathlon, and it didn't go so well. I decided to focus on running instead. I may try an olympic distance duathlon  instead.
Complete the Tri 2010 dailymile challenge - run/bike/swin at least a total of 2010 miles in tri proportions: swim 60, bike 1568, run/walk 382	Yes and No. I covered a total of 2572 miles, but not in those proportions. My swimming was practically non-existant, but the biking and running more than made up for it. I'll post full distance/time stats and graphs for all sports in a separate post when Dailymile publishes the annual reports.
Do a long run of at least 6-10 miles/week (total of 12 - 18 miles per week)	Yes, for the most part. I am sure there were a few weeks when I did not, due to injury or some other conflict, but I kept up with running pretty regularly throughout the year.
Run/walk 700 miles (58/month; 14/week)	Yes! I ran 686 miles and walked 326 miles for a total of 1,012 miles.
Bike 1750 miles (146/month; 34/week)	No, but 1552 miles is still an improvement over the 1487 miles in 2009.
Swim 1 mile non-stop	No, I stopped swimming after the triathlon break up. I'll attempt this again someday, but not anytime soon.
Exercise 365 hours (1 hour/day)	Yes! 439 hours (37/mo; 8.4/wk; 1.2/day)
Run a 5K in under 30 minutes (or PR)	Yes! New PR is 32:10, and improvement of 1:02
Run a 10K without walking	Yes! My longest non-stop run was 7.5 miles.
Run a 1/2 marathon in under 2:35 (or PR)	Yes and Yes! :) I PR and ran 2 under 2:35.
Maintain my weight at under 125 lbs	Kinda. My weight fluctuates between 125-130, and I'm ok with that.

2010 Recap: Races and Milestones

2010 was a great year filled with new experiences and new PRs :) I had some setbacks, but when I looked back on the whole year I realized how minor they were. The setbacks pale in comparison to everything that I managed to accomplish, including running my first marathon! :) I ran 686 miles, which is 130 miles more than last year, and completed 22 races with 6 new PRs! Below are the full stats on the races and milestones of 2010. Other 2010 recaps to follow in separate posts.

Totals:

• run = 686 miles
• walk = 326 miles
• bike = 1552 miles
• total miles = 2572 miles
• total time = 439 hrs

6 New PRs:

1. 1 mile = 9:04 (10 sec)
2. 2 miles = 20:59 (7:53)
3. 5K = 32:10 (1:02)
4. 5 miles = 54:59 (3:35)
5. 10K = 1:08:35 (7:17)
6. Half Marathon = 2:28:16 (7:22)

8 Firsts:

1. Marathon
2. Adventure Race
3. Firefighter Challenge and Stair Climb
4. Bay to Breakers 12k (1st out of state race)
5. Muddy Buddy
6. Ran 7.5 miles without walking
7. Half Fanatic (2 half marathons in 7 days)
8. Placed 2nd and 3rd in my age group at 5K

22 Races:

3 more than last year including 1 2-miler;  7 5Ks; 2 10Ks; 1 12K; 4 Half Marathons; 1 Marathon; 1 Sprint Triathlon; 1 Relay (5-Miles); 4 other

1. [12.04] OUC Half Marathon - 2:31:03 (chip)
2. [11.28] Space Coast Half Marathon - 2:28:16 (chip)
3. [11.25] Tumarac Turkey Trot 5K - 38:21 (chip)
4. [11.14] Founder's Day 5K - 35:02 (clock)
5. [11.14] Founder's Day 10K 1:09:47 (chip)
6. [11.06] Urban Dare - 2:15:58 (clock)
7. [10.31] Miami Beach Halloween Half Marathon - 2:49:27 (chip)
8. [08.07] Cool Summer Mornings 5K #3 - 33:58 (chip)
9. [07.18] Cool Summer Mornings 5K #2 - 32:47 (chip)
10. [07.08] Watermelon 5K
11. [06.12] CF Tri #1 - 1:54:01 (chip)
12. [05.29] Firefighter Challenge and Stair Climb
13. [05.22] LBLO / Rock Your Socks Half Marathon - 2:35:38 (watch)
14. [05.16] Bay to Breakers 12k - 1:29:15 (chip)
15. [05.08] Muddy Buddy - 1:07:05 (chip)
16. [04.24] Run for the Trees 5k - 32:10 (chip)
17. [04.15] Corporate 5K - 34:37 (watch)
18. [03.13] Winter Park 2 miler - 20:59 (clock)
19. [03.13] Winter Park 10K - 1:08:35 (chip)
20. [02.28] Gasparilla Marathon - 5:22:33 (chip)
21. [02.21] BCM Relay (5 miles) - 54:59 (chip)
22. [02.06] UCF Adventure Race