Extreme Training and Coldstone

Today started out great! I woke up at 5:45 and was at the gym by 6 for Extreme Bootcamp~ one of my favorite classes (picture Jillian Michaels Shred level 3 x 1 hour with two 20 second water breaks). Definitely gets you in shape! I was always so opposed to going to boot camp type classes but now have learned how important it is to incorporate strength training into a gym routine- and its fun!! (even better in the summer when my gym holds the class outdoors- even better when we get to flip big tractor tires in the mud)

check out this crazy boot camp on my gyms blog site!


Since I have been so good the past few days with my workout schedule, I figured why not give myself a treat that I have been craving- MMMMM coldstone!!!

YUM!!

Now off to plan a tropical vacation- may need to start focusing on working off this ice cream for bikini!!!

Are you traveling anywhere fun this winter???

speedwork

After hitting Snooze a million times on both my iPhone and "real" alarm clock...I did not get up for a morning run...opps. Worked late...and was feeling pretty fatigued by the end of the day BUT I did force myself to go to the gym and do some speedwork.

7:24 pace x .25 miles for several repeats...Not crazy fast, but have been so careful of this ankle the past few months that I have done ZERO speedwork until today. After a nice 4 miles I felt good with endorphins flowing again!
Watch out NYC....I will pound your streets in 10 weeks!

Time to get to bed and try to get a few chapters of my book in. ~ Reading the Girl that Kicked the Hornet's Nest- hopefully will be as good as the first 2 books.

What are you reading?
How often do you do Speedwork???

NYC half and headlamp love

I have been so bad about posting!!!
My goal is to start blogging regularly, and now that the holidays are over I have no excuses!

Biggest news of late: I got into the NYC half!!!! wooohooo! My friend Allison, who lives in NYC, and I are going to rock this race- so excited that we BOTH got in!! And it is on St Patricks day- green team sparkle skirt all the way!!!!  I have a secret goal for this race....but I am afraid to say it.... MY PR is currently 1:45 coming off an injury...

The race is 10 weeks away so my plan is:
~gradually increase mileage (to avoid injury)
~hill workouts
~speed work
~yoga at least once a week (to avoid injury)
~MXT (bootcamp) at least once a week (to avoid injury)

Runners so often forget how important strength training is (including me) and one of my 2012 goals is to AVOID INJURY!

Fast Abs

Forget crunches. If you want to get faster, fitter, and stronger, you need to train your core like a runner. By Alyssa Shaffer

Image by Sarah A. FriedmanFrom the February 2009 issue of Runner's World 

Check out this great article!!

Tonight, I had a great workout- Sorry Treadmill, the headlamp won!!!! (actually I am not sorry). Great  5 mile trail run/hill run/road run- nothing like mixing it up and the headlamp works great in the dark woods! I usually stick to the light on the sidewalks when running at night, but now that I have found my headlamp I definitely plan to continue trails and road running with the safety of knowing that everyone can see me and my fantastically bright light.

A sparkly day!

I'm back!!!!!!!.....Meaning that I finally had a good run...in the 37 degree drizzle! The best part~My sparkly headband and I ran a nice little 5k loop in 25:51 this morning~ Yes, that would be a 8:19 pace~ the pace I like to train at!  And I added another mile to it making it a nice even 4 miles.

My new favorite outfit- Lulu Run tech top and my sparkle headband!
I had bought the technical top a few months ago, but being sidelined from running I had no use to wear it- This is my second run in it and I love it!! Perfect for 37 degrees and rain. One of the best parts:

Nice little thumb holes to keep those hands warm. (This wont be warm enough for my paws once the snow hits but for now it's perfect!) If you don't own any Lululemon- BUY SOME...I used to think it was insanely priced but this fabric is 100% worth it.
Another cute part of this shirt:

Around the inside of the waistline is the saying: " I am a runner because I run. Set your goals. Life is too short for the treadmill, get out and run! Do it now."


Agreed. Life is way too short for the treadmill!!!!

I have gotten several compliments on my sparkle headband. Love this thing~ it does not slip at all and was created by a triathlete. Gives a nice extra "pop" to your outfit and keeps your hair out of your face.

After my run today I went to yoga at my gym...such a treat to be able to go to Karyn's power vinyasa class since I am on vacation!!!!! Sparkle headband attended as well.

Speaking of sparkles...another sparkly part of my day was lunch at the best sushi place in town~ SHIKI!! I hadn't been there in awhile and everything was fabulous as usual. You know it's a good sushi place when all the Asians in town are eating there. Love that it is not mainstream.
My favorite thing to order: Spicy shrimp roll- no other sushi place has perfected the mayo based spiciness like they have (and I have eaten at Nobu and several other "decent" sushi places).
YUM!!!!

And to top of my day I spent the afternoon making a dent in my xmas shopping.
I love candles and think they make a great "generic" gift...but really $20 for these things!!!???

You can't really tell by the picture but they actually aren't big at all.. Yeah, I could easily go to many other stores and pay half of that...Great smell but I refuse to drop $20 on a small candle!
I spent my $20 in much better ways buying several gifts for people-yay for a dent in the xmas shopping!!!
Hope everyone had a sparkly day!!

Do you wear Lululemon?




Favorite type of sushi??


Xmas shopping started?

Run and NYC half

Day 1 of vacation: ahhh sleeping in!! I never ever sleep in anymore- but after a busy weekend it was much needed.
I decided to take a run around noon, when the rain finally stopped ( not that rain has stood in my way before but I was feeling lazy). I took a slow 4 mile run through my neighborhood- was feeling kind of drained probably because 1.) I did Bikram yoga last night and then refueled with wine, diet coke and only one full glass of water and half a powerade. 2.) I didn't have any breakfast before my run... Pretty much 2 no no's! Yeah, that was pretty dumb on my part.
When I checked my Garmin and saw I ran at a 9:01 pace I was like hmmm...maybe more hydration next time!!
By the time I got back from my run I was starving and had one of my favorite staples for my late brunch:

YUM! Cant go wrong with Oatmeal- especially when it is topped with brown sugar!

Besides a bunch of errands I also knocked off another important "to Do" off my list- Applying for the 2012 NYC half marathon. I thought I had remembered NY Road Runners saying something last year about guaranteed entry in 2012 with a course that could accommodate more runners...maybe I dreamed that up. So I spent $5 towards a processing fee of possibly being chosen through the lottery...at which point my credit card gets charged $128.
I completely understand the need to put a cap on races- I have run races that I have felt were unsafe due to the amount of runners and lack of organization and supplies, and nature of the course. So, I get it....just really hoping to get in!! Although, if I had run just a little faster my last half I could have gotten guaranteed entry based on time....time for a new goal!!!

What do you think? Are the fees ($128 plus $5 application) "fair" for a half marathon? What do you think of the cap of 10,000 runners?

Longer RUN

Yesterday I ran at Mendon Ponds....drumroll....8 glorious miles!! The most my foot has tolerated since the marathon. It was a beautiful morning (26 degrees!) at the start of the run, but slowly the sun came up and I couldn't imagine being anywhere but running in this beautiful park.

I feel so alive- more than I have in a long time~ and I swear it is because I can RUN again. Being sidelined sure makes you grateful for the ability to run.

I must admit~ I was very nervous as to what today might bring in terms of pain in my foot...But I woke up feeling great- So good that I jumped out of bed and put my running clothes on. However, as I was walking around my bedroom I felt the smallest twinge in my ankle and decided that I better take my running clothes back off and play it safe....It was definitely hard for me to remove my garmin from my wrist before I even had left my bedroom..BUT no more sidelines- I will not overtrain.

Later this afternoon I went to Bikram Yoga- great class- 90 minutes of sweat beads stinging my eyeballs- loving every minute!

MRI and Turkey Trot

Quick update: My MRI results are in! - No fracture and all ligaments intact....however, I do have a plantar ganglion cyst (probably a complication of a sprain). Now the pain makes sense. I am still reading up on what a ganglion cyst is - so if anyone knows anything about them please let me know!!!

In other news...Since the MRI showed no fracture or torn tendons...I RAN the Turkey Trot!!

 First time running in over a month...boy, was I sucking wind. Swimming does not = running. Also, staying out until 3am the night before does not help! ha. I played it safe and ran slowly...embarrassed to say that my 5K split time was 25:11....BUT I am learning not too push myself too hard and cause more problems! And honestly I was just thankful  to be able to be running at all.

4.1 Mile Turkey Trot: 33:57  Definitely not a PR but happy to be back out there on a beautiful day running!!!!