Tag Archive | running

In Love with Big Sur

May2

BeachBody Day72 – Sunday – Big Sur International Marathon!!

Those that follow me on Twitter and Facebook know that Big Sur went well :-) I had a blast!! The weather was perfect and it was just an absolutely beautiful run. I was so happy to share the experience with my Aunt and Sister. We all did better than we had expected :-)

Our morning started early. My aunt’s 21miler had her up at 3a :-/ We did not envy her. She said that she didn’t sleep for more than a couple hours because she was nervous. And despite that she still beat her training time and came in under 4 hours! Way to go Aunt San!! My sister’s 5K and my 9miler started at the same time. We were up at 5a.  We got dressed and packed up because my aunt had already checked us out when she left for her race. At first I thought her race would start before mine. We were happy to be able to start together. My sister ran her whole 5K – which she hadn’t planned on doing because of her hip – and beat her expected time too. I am so proud of both of them.

I was separated from my sister early on. I tend to get very focused and just run.  Our courses split after a run on a trail by the water. It was just so beautiful. I wish I could have stopped to take pictures and just take it all in, but I had to keep running. It was 50 degrees and overcast when we started. I really couldn’t have asked for better weather. It’s what I’m use to running in. What I wasn’t use to were the hills :-/ I knew that there would be some hills, but I wasn’t expecting it to be hill after hill. lol. Not that they were all big hills, but it there wasn’t all that much flat areas. It would level off and then I was going either up or down again. I could definitely feel my booty getting worked! I didn’t run with music because I wanted to enjoy the course.  There was plenty of entertainment.  There was a Samba band, a flute player, a guy playing the bag pips, a band singing, and people cheering you on all through out the course. It also helped that there was just beautiful scenery throughout the course. The beginning took us through a really nice neighborhood in Carmel. I would love to live in one of those houses. There were several ocean views and the run through the park was wonderful. It felt like I was running through my grandfather’s property.

I had my phone in my belt so I didn’t see what my time or pace was. I had no concept of how time at all. There were only a couple mile markers that I could see.  The 1 mile point and the 25mile marker which marked the last mile for all the courses. I felt like I was running slower because of the hills and that I was getting passed up. When I could feel it in my legs I was hoping that I was getting close to the end.  During training, it was the last couple miles that my legs would start to feel tired and my knees got achy. This time, I could feel my booty and my calves too.  I loved that there were people all throughout the last half mile cheering you on. It was so cute to see the little kids cheering.  They also had cardboard cut outs that were funny.

I could hear the announcer as I got closer to the finish line. I used everything I had left to go faster at the end. I almost couldn’t believe that I was done when I crossed the finish line. It didn’t feel like I had been running for over an hour.  A girl came up to me and handed me a finisher medal and I wound up posing for photo. I was directed towards the tents and told to grab a brown paper bag and go. I took half a blueberry muffin that was offered to me and called my sister to find out where she was. She wasn’t expecting me for a while so she was a little shocked when I called her. We stretched out and went to starbucks for coffee and tea. We had a couple hours before my Aunt was expected to finish her race so we walked around the Finisher’s Village. There were tents for the special groups and sponsors. You couldn’t miss the Michelobe Ultra tent if you tried. lol.

We decided to go to finish line and watch the racers come in. I was very inspired by the marathoners crossing the finish line. Many had big smiles on their faces as they crossed that finish line. I loved how many of the spectators cheered all of the runners on at the end. There was just so much positive energy and excitement. I was impressed by those that did the Boston to Big Sur. I really can’t imagine running one marathon and then running a second one only 13 days later :-/ We were trying to catch our Aunt coming across the finish line. We watched for two hours and then we started to think we must have missed her. My sister got a call from a local number it was my Aunt calling from someone’s phone. She had finished an hour earlier. lol. We met her at the Info booth. Obviously we didn’t have a post race meet up plan set up. We asked a volunteer to take a picture of us then headed out to lunch. I was starving! I decided to have 1 slice of pesto pizza as a treat. Then it was time to drive home. I had to fight falling asleep O_o I was sooo tired all the way home.

Turbo Fire Day 70 – I did not get a chance to rest once I did get home. Ben went to run some errands which meant I had the boys to take care of and it was almost dinner time. I forced myself to do my Turbo Fire workout for the day. I kept it low impact on the fire drills for Fire30 but I gave the workout everything I had left. Stretch10 was great. My sore muscles enjoyed the extended stretch.

I have to Thank my boys for being extremely good that night.  They saw that I was extremely tired and didn’t make things hard for me. They ate their dinner and went to bed without any trouble.  They also gave me Big Hugs to make me feel better :-)

I know that I didn’t have to do a plank for the night, but I told myself that I could do anything for 1min so I did a one minute plank on my elbows :-)

Meals –

M1: Whole Wheat Bagel Thin w/ Almond Butter and a banana. Zico to drink.

Carried a 20 oz. bottle with Zico for my run. Stopped at the last 2 aid stations for water.

M2: Half of a blueberry muffin and Starbucks Iced Green Tea/ Luna bar and Chocolate Zico.

M3: 1 Slice of Pest Pizza from Pizza My Heart and a Chicken Walnut Salad.

Chicken Walnut Salad w/ Balsamic Vinegar Dressing

My slice of pesto pizza :-)

M4: Almond Coconut Kind bar – on the ride home.

M5: Quinoa w/ turkey spinach red sauce.

Love quinoa and red sauce.

60 oz. water and 3 Zicos.

First 10K!

Apr26

BeachBody Day65

I signed up for the Capital City Classic 10K last minute.  My friend Malissa was doing it so I decided to do it with her.  I didn’t really train for it.  I’ve been focusing on my Big Sur training, but since I’ve been doing 9 mile runs, I figured that I could do 6 miles. I didn’t think I was all that nervous but I guess I was because I really didn’t sleep well the night before. It was also a very hot night. Despite that, I didn’t feel tired when I got up at 5a.  We were staying at Ben’s mom’s house which was an hour away from where the race was being held. I got dressed and went down stairs to eat. I couldn’t have my usual whole wheat bagel, almond butter, and banana.  Ben’s mom had whole grain bread, some peanut butter and strawberries.  Hydrated with Zico.

There was also a kids race that the boys could do. I didn’t sign them up before hand because I knew that there was a good chance that they would not want to do it.  I was impressed that Gio got up at 5a and still wanted to go. Seppe on the other hand decided to stay with grandma and get some more sleep. Ben got up with us and did the driving. We didn’t leave until 6:15 but the way he drove, it only took 45min to get there. lol.

I picked up my bib and shirt then registered Gio for his race. He was very happy to get a shirt and a bib. There was a kid’s play area with a bounce house and slide that Gio played on while we waited for my friend to get there. I used the restroom and put on my race shirt. I was wearing my Tone It Up tank. I’d love to run with it, but I didn’t want to stick the pins in it so I threw the Tech shirt on top – in hindsight I should have taken the tank off because it was sooo hot! I had wanted to have my belt pack and phone with me, but since I forgot my belt, I couldn’t bring my phone on my run :-( I like to have my phone on me to map the route and I wanted to log the race into to my Nike+ app. Oh well – it was a naked run for me.

Before the Race Not even 8a and it was already really bright and sunny!

The one thing that I really didn’t like about the race was that it started Both the 5K and 10K at the same time – without any way of organizing those who were walking or running.  There were A lot of kids there. It looked like a bunch of schools got groups together to do the 5k run/walk.  Nothing stopped them from going to the front of the line.  I knew that none of them were going to be running fast enough. As soon as the announcer counted down and the crowd moved, it was task to weave through the kids.  A bunch just stopped running right in front of us. grrrr!!!

At 8a it was already hot. I wasn’t really prepared for the heat. I’m a little spoiled with the Bay Area weather. I usually always get a nice cool breeze during my runs and it’s never 80 degrees by 8a :-/ I had planned on also brining my water bottle, but that got forgotten as well – what happens when I’m in a rush. I stopped at all 3 aid stations. At the first one, I was handed some gatorade and tried to drink it while I jogged – FAIL!!! I spilled it all over me so I was sticky as well as sweaty.  I slowed down and walked while I drank water at the other 2 stations.

It was a nice run – very scenic. We ran by the Sacramento River and over the Tower Bridge. That was kind of cool because I’ve only ever driven over it. I welcomed every stretch of shade and dreaded all the open stretches in the blazing sun. There were even a few hills that were not fun but the few incline runs I did helped out. It was a lot less crowded once we separated from the 5k runners. Once we got to Old Sac, we were mixed back in with them.  It was hard to weave through them because so many were walking. The last stretch had a hill  thatI thought was just cruel. lol. I tried to sprint at the end but had to slow down several times because there were so many people walking in front of me.  I almost ran right into a spectator crossing the street.

Hydrating with Zico at the Finish line.

My Stats! I'm Number 6 :-)

But despite all that, I was able to beat my training time by 4 minutes!! My time 50:07. Not too bad, but I wasn’t thrilled about it. I think I could have done even better if I was able sprint as fast as I wanted to at the end. I’m pretty hard on myself. Ben said he was looking for me to take a picture but I ran right by him and he didn’t even realize it. lol. The heat really got to me because as soon as I stopped running, my head started hurting.  I went straight to the Zico station to get some coconut water. I was thrilled that they were there. I love Zico!!! Ben handed me a Dark Chocolate and Cherry Kind bar and I ate that. I waited for my friend at the finish line and then we both went to Zico station and I  grabbed another one.

My friend Malissa at the finish line. She did a Great job :-)

Me and Malissa After the race - Yep that's a second Zico for me :-)

Snack Table - fruit, mini power bars, and bagels.

Zico Station. They worked hard to keep us hydrated :-)

Pop Chips Tent - We went back 3 times :-)

She grabbed some of the snacks that were there for us. I skipped it and went to the PopChips tent and picked up some Sweet Potato and Parmesan Garlic. Yum!  Then we waited for Gio’s race to start. He kept asking what time it was every minute. lol. He did not want to miss his race.  There were 3 races – 1mile, 1/2mile, and 1/4mile. At first he was lined up for the mile,  but got scared and decided to wait for the 1/2 mile. He was being very shy and did not want to be left alone at the start line. In the end, I had to run his race with him. He wanted me to hold his hand but I told him that I wouldn’t run with him if I had to hold his hand.

Me and my little runner before his race.

At the start line. It was really hot by the time his race started.

He sprinted away from me so fast I wasn’t expecting it. I had to sprint to catch up to him.  It didn’t take long for him to slow down though. lol.  “Half a mile is hard,” is what he said to me while we ran.  He wanted to stop but I told him all he had to do was slow down.  He walked for a few seconds then started jogging again.  He did pretty good staying at a jogging pace. I told him that once we reached the corner that we would sprint and he did. I raced him to the finish line :-) He was very happy to get a ribbon. I was very proud of him. He wants to race again :-)

So proud of his ribbon for doing the 1/2 mile.

Our Cheerleader and Chauffeur. So happy he was there to support me :-)

All in all a good experience.  My headache lasted most of the day though – even after taking a couple excedrin.  After the race, we went back to his mom’s and had some lunch.  It was such a hot day so the boys spent the day in the pool. After eating, I laid down for a nap. It was really hot so I didn’t sleep well, but I got enough to make my headache go away.

Turbo Fire Day65 – When I woke up, I had some fruit for a snack and then did my Fire30/Stretch10 workout. The boys were still in the pool so I as able to workout without any interruption. I was able to go all out on the Fire Drills.  Since it was so hot, I was dripping with sweat the whole time.

Ready to sweat!

After having dinner it was time to drive home.  After putting the boys to bed I did a 3 min plank with 1 min of tummy tucks before going to bed. I was very happy to be back home with wind and cooler weather.

Meals:

M1: Whole Grain toast w/ peanut butter and 3 strawberries. Zico to drink.

M2: post run – Dark Choc Cherry Kind Bar and 2 Zicos and 1 bag of sweet potato PopChips

M3: Chicken w/ brown rice.

M4: Strawberries.

M5: Chicken salad with pineapple and avocado.

BBQ chicken with lots of fresh pineapple, avocado, and lettuce. No dressing needed.

60 oz. of water and 3 Zicos.

Sign up for the Bikini Series at ToneItUp.com

You can also still sign up for Self Magazine’s Drop10 Challenge

BeachBody Day58 – New Challenge

Apr16

Tone It Up started their 2nd Bikini Series on Sunday. And like all the rest of my wonderful ToneItUp Team, I am so excited! I started with their first Bikini Series last year and that was the beginning of a beautiful love affair between me and Tone It Up :-)

The Challenge for Sunday was to write down our goals for the next 8 weeks, to share two of them via twitter, facebook or the ToneItUp community, and to plan/prep for Monday and the rest of our week :-) I shared my goals in the community and two of them on Facebook.
Here’s My 8 Week Goals:
1. Complete my Big Sur 9mile race without stopping :-)
2. Drink 80 oz. of water everyday.
3. Drink at least 1c. of Green Tea everyday.
4. BootyCall Workouts 5X a week.
5. Try out new healthy recipes – especially from the BeachBabe Edition of the Nutrition Plan :-)
6. Finish my TurboFire Program.
7. Stick to Clean, Lean and Green Dinners.
8. Enjoy every moment I have with my husband and sons.

I am really looking forward to all the new workouts and other challenges for the Bikini Series :-)

Sunday Runday :-)

Workouts – Bootycall was a 3 mile run. I went without any music and had the best run I’ve had in two weeks. I don’t it was because I didn’t have music that had the  most impact on my run. I think I was more rested and better fueled. Despite an overcast day, we decided to go to the beach for a picnic. It was actually really nice.  Not too windy and cold.  The boys even went into the water and go wet.  Luckily I brought a change of clothes for them.

Boys playing in the waves.

Turbo Fire Day56 – I did Core20/Stretch 10 after dinner. I really made an effort to keep my feet up the whole time during the matt exercise. Stretch10 is always nice after a workout. It’s a short stretch but helps loosen you up.

I followed it with Tone It Up’s new Bikini Ab workout. And boy my abs were sore after that. There were a couple really tough exercises for me but I’m going to work on those.  I ended with a 2min plank.

2min on elbows.

Meals –

M1: Luna bar – something small before my run.

M2: Bowl of grapes.

M3: 6 inch Turkey Avocadio Subway on whole wheat with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, olives, and cucumbers.  No sauce, mayo or cheese.

M4: Almond Coconut Kind Bar.

M5: Ben has to have steak because of all the blood he loss so he made some tri-tip for dinner.  I took a small piece and had some Quinoa mixed with bell peppers, mushrooms, and bean sprouts. Also had some asparagus.

Steak for dinner.

80 oz. of water. Didn’t get my green tea in :-/ It’s something I have to work hard on because I’m not use to drinking tea regularly.

Sign up for the Bikini Series at ToneItUp.com

You can also still sign up for Self Magazine’s Drop10 Challenge

BeachBody Day52 & Day53

Apr15

Combined Day52 and Day53 because they were pretty much the same. Monday was my first day back to my Turbo Fire workouts. Gosh! I really missed doing these.  I picked up where I left off so this was the beginning of week 8 for me. Luckily, this is the recovery week from the month of cardio and perfect to help ease me back into my workouts before starting the last month of HIITs.

Day52 – It was really really hard to get up for my bootycall, but I did it! Having Ben home recovering and the boys home for Spring break had me kind of on vacation mode. lol. I enjoyed sleeping more :-) Even though it isn’t March anymore, I still wanted to finish the Mad Abs Challenge. I had 6 days left to do and I had started back up last week.  I did Day30 with 43 pushups, 55 second side plank, and 58 crunches. I am able to do regular pushups but I take mini breaks in plank. After I reached 40 it really started to get super hard for me. I would be really sore so I decided to do the last few days of the challenge every other day. Does that make sense?? lol. Basically, I take a day off then do the next day :-)

Turbo Fire Day 50 – It’s been a long time since I did Fire45EZ. I almost did the New to Class option but decided that I could figure it out.  I really didn’t remember the routines but I was able to catch on really quickly. This one doesn’t have any Fire drills but it’s still an amazing workout :-) It was so much fun and definitely a favorite now.  I did get a little lost at one point and little out of breath.  I had forgotten how intense these were when you really push yourself.

First run after a week.

I also got back to the Drop10 Challenge from SelfMagazine. I was trying to catch up on the workouts, but the only thing that changes are the cardio workouts. I decided to just do the current workout for me and that was 5K run.  Ben’s schedule is different for this week so I had to do my run later in the day.  I went at an easy pace.  My legs have been really tight because I was out of my Zico and bananas so my potassium intake has been a lot lower.  I swear by Zico.  Ever since I started drinking it – especially after my runs, my calves have not cramped up even after my long runs. And I could feel them quite a bit during and after my run. I’ve been doing PlankADays for the last week.  I ended with a 2 min plank.

Started back up with my PlankADays. 2min on hands.

Meals –

M1 – Chobani Champions Vanilla Chocolate Chunk with chia seeds and almond butter.

M2 – Apple and 5 dark chocolate almonds.

M3 – Egg Salad and Tuna Salad on top of Whole Wheat Bagel Thins w/ spinach. Used plain Chobani greek yogurt to make the salads.  The boys love these salads and I’m so glad that I can make it with greek yogurt instead of mayo.

Lunch for the boys - I had the same thing but on whole wheat bagel thins and minus the cheese sticks. Added tomato slices and spinach on top.

M4 – skipped :-(

M5 – Turkey Meatballs and Grilled Veggies (egg plant and zucchini)

I love these Grilled Eggplant and Zucchini from Trader Joes :-) Very yummy with Turkey Meatballs.

60 oz. of water.

Day 53 – Had to get up a little bit earlier today because Seppe is back in preschool.  Gio is still on break until next week so I knew it was going to be tough getting him up.  I did the Drop10 Toning workout for my bootycall.  I did an extra set and boy does that make a difference.  It gets tougher the third time around :-)

Turbo Fire Day 51 – It was Fire45EZ again today and I had no complaints.  The routines were fresh in my head so I was able to keep up the whole time. I also cranked up the intensity and had a blast the whole time :-) I was suppose to do Stretch10 too but I was running a little late on picking Seppe up so I skipped it.

I was worn out from the Turbo Fire workouts and didn’t feel much like doing an afternoon workout. I kept putting it off. It was rainy and that always makes me just want to stay in bed. I fought the urge to just sit on my butt and headed to the gym for a HIIT workout. I did Drop10 Fat Fryer HIIT on the stationary bike. The intervals were short and it’s easier for me to do it on the bike than on the treadmill.  So thankful to my TIU sister @JulesTones for letting us know about the Seconds Pro app. I now have an interval timer and it worked perfect for my HIIT workout. It was a very short workout only 10 minutes but I was drenched with sweat and could barely feel my butt and legs at the end.  Best of all, I felt great that I did my workout when I didn’t want to :-) Ended with another 2 min plank for PlankADay – this time it was on my elbows.  I will be trying to get back to my 5 minute planks again soon.

Meals – Finally went shopping so I was able to really stay on track today :-)

M1 – Almost forgot to eat breakfast! I was in a rush to get the boys out the door so I grabbed a Luna bar and ate it on the road.

M2 – Shakeology Shake with spinach and frozen pineapple.

M3 – Left over EggSalad on the last of the whole wheat bagel thins w/ spinach and tomatoes and an apple.

M4 – 1/4 c. of raw almonds and yogurt raisins.

M5 – Whole Wheat pasta with a turkey spinach red sauce with peas, squash and zucchini.

Whole Wheat pasta with Turkey and Spinach Red Sauce. Also added squash, zucchini and peas.

60 oz. of water, 1 Zico and 1c of Chamomile Tea.

BeachBody Challenge Day47

Mar22

I’m really tired right now so I’m going to make this shorter than my usual.

This Week's Long Run

Turbo Fire Rest Day – Long Run – 8.5 miles. I don’t do bootycall workouts on my long run day. I save up all my energy for my run. Today’s run went well. My legs got a little tired at 6.5 miles but I didn’t slow down too much.  Worn out afterwards, but did Day 21 of MadAbs March – 40 sec. side plank, 42 crunches and 34 pushups. Yep. Still doing regular pushups :-)

66 Degrees and Sunshine w/ a few clouds = Shorts!

Stretching after my long run. Yep - Ran w/ a tank top too :-)

My Favorites: My Asics Running Shoes and Chocolate Zico.

Meals –

M1: Egg white, tomato and spinach omelet. So thrilled that it came out perfect :-) Also had Whole Wheat Toast w/ almond butter, banana and sprinkled w/ cinnamon.

Finally made a perfect omelet!!

M2: Luna bar.

M3: Couldn’t decide what I wanted – just took a bunch of left overs and made a mix: brown rice, seafood quinoa and veggies, and black beans.

Leftovers: brown rice, Seafood/quinoa/veggie mix, and black beans.

M4: Larabar

M5: Salmon and Broccoli.

Lean and Green.

60 oz. of water. Zico during my run and Chocolate Zico after my run.

BeachBody Challenge Day33

Mar7

TurboFire Rest Day :-)

Today didn’t start off all that well. Yep, I was up late again last night working on the boys’ tball games. Since I was doing a long run, I skip my bootycall workout to help give me more energy.  But I still had to be up early to get Gio to school.  I was running a little late because I had fallen back asleep after my alarm went off :-/  It was a rough morning where I was rushed and very tired at the same time.

After getting Gio to school, I had to get some grocery shopping done.  I was hoping to take a nap just so I could have energy to do my run. At this point, I didn’t feel like doing my run at all. I got a frustrated that there was always something that I had to do – feed Seppe breakfast (since he hadn’t eaten anything since getting up at 7a), help Ben do dishes that have been sitting there for 2 days that he now felt needed to be done, and get Seppe showered and dressed.  I was relieved when Ben took Seppe with him to run his errands and said he would pick Gio up from school. I was starting to think that I wasn’t going to have time to do my run at all.

I felt much better after my hour nap.  It was just what I needed to shake that exhausted feeling. Got dressed, filled my water bottle with some Zico, set my Nike+ app to do 7.5 miles and headed out.  It was a windy day but it felt good once I warmed up. I felt really good my whole run. I felt my knees a little bit after the 5.5 miles but they didn’t hurt.  I do like to do my runs earlier because at the time I went today there tends to be more people to weave through – like middle school kids getting out :-/ Then there were the people who decided to feed birds in the middle of trail and take pictures of them without moving at all.

Getting closer to 9 miles. Big Sur race coming up in April :-)

Got home and Gio was pretty much done with homework :-) Did some stretching and made myself a protein shake. Then I hit the shower and wished I could stay there.  Gio had practice to get to so I didn’t have time to relax after my shower.  I decided to take pictures today so instead of sitting down and watching, I walked around. My legs were pretty tired once practice ended.

I don’t usually do much more on my long run days. Over an hour of running really wears me out. Even though I had a nap today, I could fall asleep right now. I did Day7 of the MadAbs March Challenge. Up to 15 regular pushups :-) Then I did a 5 min plank to end my day.

1 min hands, 1 min side plank each side, 1 min hands, and 1 min elbows.

Meals: I have been really making an effort to stick to 5 meals a day and not eating more than one serving.

M1: Flax Plus Oatmeal with chia seeds, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, and just a tad bit of cocoa almond butter.

Fueling up for my long run.

M2: Choclate Shakeology with unsweetened almond milk, spinach and half a banana. I ate the other half of it while I blended my shake.

I also had a mini Luna bar after my nap before heading out for my run. I didn’t want to eat a full lunch but I needed a little something.

M3: Post run Protein shake. This is from the Tone It Up Slim Down and it is my absolute favorite. I usually use almond butter but I used some natural peanut butter that Ben doesn’t like so I’m the only one who uses it.

M4: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Larabar.

M5: Quinoa, Black beans, chicken, spianch, zucchini, squash, onions, and mushroom mix – seasoned with sea salt. I could have easily had another bowl but I made myself stick to one :-) This is a big deal for me since lately I’ve been going back for seconds ;-) I also passed on pot stickers, rice, and chow mein that Ben and the boys had. I count these moments as small victories that my willpower won.

Protein packed dinner.

60 oz. of water 1 Zicos, and 1 Chocolate Zico. I had the chocolate Zico after dinner so it was like dessert.

The Best!

A Very Fit February

Feb1

Well after my December Goals got derailed because of getting sick, I was able to get back to normal through Tone It Up‘s Tonedin12 Challenge that started at the beginning of the year. I was disappointed that I couldn’t follow through with my  goals, but I brushed it off. Couldn’t do anything about being sick and taking care of 3 other sick people.

My goal for January was to get back on track. The Tonedin12 Challenge really helped get me back into my routine. It took me a little while to get back to my intensity level I was at before I got sick. It was really hard to get back into doing bootycall workouts.  That and eating 5 meals a day. Fortunately, I only gained a few months over the holiday season – the one perk of being sick. lol.  This last week has been the best week for me. I’ve been able to kick my workouts up a notch.

And now I’m ready to keep on pushing! February is going to be a Very Fit month for me. I will be following through with the end of the Tonedin12 Challenge – ends on Valentine’s Day. I have no doubt that Karena and Katrina have something great for us after the end of the challenge.  Even if it’s not right after the challenge ends, there’s still their February Calendar filled with challenges that I always try to do :-)

TIU February Calendar

My big Fitness goal will be starting the Beach Body  TurboFire series. I signed up to do a fitness challenge through Beach Body coach April Anaya. We start on the 6th. It’s a 30 day challenge and there is a small group of us doing it together. I am really excited. I’ve always wanted to try TurboFire out. I think that this challenge will help keep me on track with it.

I will also be training for my first half marathon coming up in September. Today I officially registered to do the Disney Half Marathon with a friend. Even though it’s still a long way away, I want to get started on training. I was hoping to do a 10K this month but it looks like I’ll have to wait until March. I’m really excited about this month and this year. So many exciting things coming up.

September 2, 2012

Staying Healthy on Vacation

Nov30

I recently went to Vegas to celebrate my 30th Birthday :-) We were there for 5 full days. This was the first time I’ve been on vacation since starting my healthy lifestyle. And it was definitely different.

I did not tell myself that I wasn’t going to eat certain foods or that I wasn’t going to drink at all. This was Vegas and my birthday celebration after all :-) But I didn’t want to throw away all the hard work I’ve done either. If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I did the Slim Down right before my trip. (Click Here for my results).

So… How did I have a Great Time And Stay Healthy? Well…. I did my best to Make Healthy Choices. What does that mean? It means, I made Staying Healthy a Priority. I planned on it.

Pack Healthy:
First, I made sure to pack my tennis shoes. That way I had no excuse to Not at least run. I planned on being active. (Other great things to pack are a jump rope and resistance bands. They don’t take up much room and you can do some great workouts.)

I also packed healthy snacks both in my purse and in my suitcase. This really helped me stay on track with eating 5 meals a day.

Set Alarm and Get Up!
I slept in but set my alarm for 8a. I got up and ran 3 miles every day (for the first 4 days). We were lucky enough to stay with a friend of mine for the first few days (Thanks Missy and Kendall), so I had a buddy to run with. Let me just say, running 3 miles on flat terrain is way easier than running 3 miles up and down steep hills. I didn’t worry about my time or pace, I just did 3 miles.

Don’t Stress!
Since the rest of the day would be spent running around doing activities, I did not stress myself out about getting more workouts in.

Eating Out…. It’s just one of those things that happens. Our meals tended to be later than usual and there were a couple nights where dinner was at 8p. This is where will power plays a big role. Every night, But One, I kept myself to two drinks. For my body size, this was perfect. For meals, I did my best to eat lean meats and veggies -especially if it was late at night. At the same time, I did not stop myself from having a bite or two of something tasty like the veggie fried rice from Tao.

My one downfall was that I did not stay hydrated :-( I fell back into my bad habit of forgetting to hydrate before leaving because I was so preoccupied with preparing for my trip. And when we got to Vegas, I just continued to forget. But I will definitely make sure not to do that again :-)

All in all, I think I did pretty well. Yes, I could have done better with some things but I know that before finding Tone It Up and changing my lifestyle, I would have done A LOT worse. The last time I was in Vegas I didn’t even think about being healthy at all. I drank myself drunk every night, ate maybe 2 meals a day, and would have laughed in your face if you suggested I go run.

When I look back at myself 3 years ago, I’ve come a long way – especially with how I view health and fitness. It is such a Big part of my life. My friend’s daughter asked me about eating fast food, soda, and candy. I told her I don’t eat or drink that stuff. She told me I was weird. Lol. I have no problem with that. I know that it probably seems weird or strange to some people that I’ve given up fast food, soda, and most sweets. Before it would have bothered me, but now it doesn’t. Peer pressure on vacation can be tough to deal with too. I just ask myself “how will I feel about this tomorrow?” If I am going to so disappointed than I won’t have it. You  have to be selfish with your health. I have gotten better at ignoring what others say and don’t care what they might think. I can be Healthy and have a Great Time!

My First 5K!

Oct15

Well…. I did it!!! I ran my first 5K! And I feel Amazing :-)

Last night I was nervous about it mostly because I was doing it by myself but when Ben got home from work he said that he would run with me. I was shocked because I didn’t think he was too happy to have to get up early just to support me. I was really happy that he decided to run with me but I was a little worried because he hadn’t trained for it and I didn’t want him to get discouraged. But leave it to Ben to be confident and cocky as ever.  All night and this morning he kept telling me he was going to “smoke me.” Lol. Nothing phases him.

I wanted to get there early so that Ben could register and I wanted to make sure we had enough time to find the place, park, and get set up. I got up at 6a and put on my clothes.  I put on my new ToneItUp top to rep my awesome trainers and toneitup family :-) Made Ben an egg white breakfast sandwich on whole wheat bagel thins. I toasted a whole wheat bagel thin and put almond butter on top.  Added some banana slices and wrapped everything up to eat on the go — I was on a schedule. Got Ben up and while I waited for him to get ready, I packed a lunch box with the bagels, Zico, water, a banana, and couple Luna bars.

The OctobeRun was in RedWood City – only 15 minutes away from us. This was the first year it was held to raise money for the RedWood Schools and sponsored partly by OctoberFest which was happening right after the race. It was a one block walk from the parking lot to the Registration Tents and the Starting Line was not too far away.  I picked up my bib, timing chip and tshirt while Ben registered.  I was going to run with my TIU top the whole time but when I realized I had to pin my bib on, I decided to save my super comfy and cute top.  I wore a tank underneath so all I did was swap my TIU top for the Octoberun tshirt. We had plenty of time after getting our timing chips and bibs on so we walked back to the car to put our sweaters and lunch box away.

Got My OctobeRun thsirt and bib On - Cheesin

Ben Stretching

My bib # 21

Me and my Benny ready for the Race

Some Stretching and jumping in place to warm up and we watched as the half marathoners start their race.  I really admired those people and one day I hope to be one of them :-)  There were a lot running the half marathon but even more running the 5K.  It was so cool to see people of all ages.  The oldest was an 85 year old woman who wound up taking 2nd in her age group. There were lots of families with kids running too.  I think the youngest runner was 7 – and I think he beat me. lol.

At around 10 minutes before our start time, we headed to the starting line. I worked us towards the front, but not right in front. There were so many people there. I was a little worried I’d get trampled :-/  My heart started to race a little bit when the the timer started counting down. I didn’t know if I was going to stay with Ben the whole time or not.  A part of me wanted to but the other part of me wanted to give it my all. My goal was to finish without stopping and to at least make my best time during training – 27 minutes.

The Count Down

The Start/Finish Line

The starter gun went off…. and away we went.  It was tough to get through the crowd at first. Had to maneuver around kids and cones. I don’t know when I separated from Ben.  I thought he was with me for a while because I could hear breathing behind me but when I looked back it wasn’t him.   The route wasn’t too bad. Mostly on streets until the halfway way point where we had to go over a bridge (uphill).  At the bottom of the hill was the turn around point with a water station. I did take some water but probably could have been fine without it. Then it was time to head back up the hill again and go back the way we came.

Crossing the finish line was such a great feeling. It was really neat to hear the announcer call my name as I finished.  They had volunteers right there to take the timing chips off.  I wasn’t paying attention to the timer when I crossed but I think it was 25 min and 20 seconds… give or take a few seconds. lol. I waited for Ben at the finish. He came in around 30 minutes. I was really proud of him because he didn’t stop even though he wanted to.  Not bad for someone who hasn’t run in a Long time.

Ben at the finish Line

I had to go to the car and put my TIU top back on and hydrate with my favorite Zico :-) We grabbed a goodie bag and Ben ate some oranges.  They had coffee cake, oranges, and bananas, for us to eat after the run.  We had already split the banana we brought while walking to and from the car.  We walked over to OctoberFest across the street.  The smells from the food trucks were so tempting. Luckily I had a Luna bar with me so I ate that while we walked around to keep me from breaking down and buying the junk food. There were also pastries, kettle corn,  and Italian desserts.  But they also had a farmers market with lots of fresh, local produce. I wish we would have had more time to stick around because I would have loved to stock up on those veggies.  Unfortunately, we had to leave because Ben had to get ready for work.

Hydrating with Zico

Coffee Cake in different flavors

Love my new Tone It Up Top

We stopped to look at the results posted on a van.  I tried to take a picture but didn’t get my time in the frame :-( I came in 69th overall and 4th in my age group.  I am so proud of myself.  I beat my best time by a whole 2 minutes.

Results Sheet (2nd Page) - I'm the second from the top :-)

*I looked up my time on the results page:

69

 Maria Beringuel Foster City CA

21

29

F

4 20-29

25:29.0

25:38.6

0:09.6

8:13

25:29 was my time from the Start Line. 25:38 was my time overall – the 9.6 seconds difference is how long it took me to get to the start line from where I was at – not too much of a difference. 8:13 was my average pace :-)

I had a great time.  I am especially happy that Ben was with me.  I even got him to do another one with me next month – but he’ll train for it.  His goal next time is to “smoke me.” lol.

Thank You to Karena, Katrina, and my Tone It Up family. Because of you, I have more confidence than I’ve ever had. I feel amazing and stronger (physically and mentally). I am looking forward to my next race.