Butternut Squash Soup - Must Share!

Sorry I've left you all without a post in a while.  The workouts have been going pretty well... we are on to week three and going strong.  The nutrition plan has been pretty difficult the past week - holiday drinks, work bake-offs, and yummy goody gifts galore. 

So far I haven't lost any weight (or gained any weight) but I've gained muscle and lost body fat percentage. 

In other news...

If this recipe was on Pinterest I could have marked it down as one that I have completed.  I may have to pin this recipe myself.  I found it on Tasting Table and it is SUPER delicious.  You guys have to try it.

Workout Song of the Day: "Hide U" by Kosheen (an oldie but a goodie)

Truly Inspirational Tuesday

Love it or leave it everyone has to admire this pole dancer's ability and strength on this YouTube clip.  (totally clean btw)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waIuhfoTMv8

Me?  I personally love it.  I think its truly an artform... a style of dance that uses a big prop thereby allowing you to try some incredible strength moves.  

 

Workout Song of the Day: "Every Tear Drop is a Waterfall" by Coldplay.  Just beautiful.  http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/every-teardrop-is-a-waterfall/id471339278?i=471339498

Cheers to my run group! (Week 2, Day 1)

(great inspiration from a Saucony Ad)

Good morning and happy Monday!

I dedicate this blog post to my awesome after work run group.  I lead a group of around 8-10 people on various distance runs around the area.  Now I have an email distribution of about 87 people but only 8-10 show up.  BUT those 8-10 people ARE AWESOME, amazing people that I wouldn't trade for the world.  It's an equal mix of people who are new to running and those who are looking for a new personal best at the races we are training for.  I love that they always have smiles on their faces and are eager to get out there no matter what the weather.  (For Los Angeles it was pretty cold this Saturday.)

Three cheers to them!

I don't think I would have started running had there not been a group to train with.  Running led to triathlons.  Running introduced me to my wonderful boyfriend.  Running keeps me focused and happy. 

If you don't have a run group I highly recommend starting one up.  You don't have to be a speed demon.   I'm happy to answer any questions if someone is interested.

Workout Song of the Day: "Fall at Your Feet" by Boy and Bear (A cool down or warm up song) http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/fall-at-your-feet/id400002245?i=400002474

Crazy good but totally weird (Day 5)

Last night I was craving some sweets big time.  I held strong though and didn't go for ice cream (remember I live next to the flagship Baskin Robbins store).  Go me!

So my boyfriend went into the kitchen and came out with a healthy surprise.  I found it totally weird but surprisingly good....

Cottage Cheese, Greek Yogurt, Pomegranate arils, Blackberries, and Honey. 

Cottage cheese + Greek Yogurt... who knew.  The saltiness of the the cottage cheese balanced out the acidity of the yogurt.  Delish!  I recommend. 

Do you have any healthy dessert recipes to share?  I could use some help.

Workout song of the day: "Murder Weapon" by Tricky http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/murder-weapon/id393119967?i=393120055

Need Motivation? (Day 4)

Another great Pinterest gem that I must share shows us that we need to quit couch loafing and do it:

If you can't see the chart large enough please check out this

awesome blog (its worth it): http://www.nomorebacon.com/i-dont-want-to-workout-today-flowchart/

Thank you Ryan Sullivan for making me laugh. 

Workout Song of the Day (This one is great for stretching... brings me back to my dance days of an hour long stretch session with Mr. B):  "Draw the Stars" by Andreya Triana http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/draw-the-stars/id427589342?i=427589343

Hair Story (Day 3)

I've had long blonde hair for practically like all of my life.  I went red for about a year (three years ago).  I had short blonde hair for like a year (college).  And lately I've been just plain bored of it. 

So last week I thought hey why don't I die my hair and cut it in the same trip?  Fantastic idea right... go bold!  (My hair dresser decided red was the best option and I must say that I like it.) 

The problem is that I'm supposed to wash it like once or twice a week.  ONCE OR TWICE A WEEK!  You must be crazy.  I'm working out twice a day (including pool swims) so it is just impossible.  Wah wah wahhhhhh. 

Yes I know I look like a crazy person.  You try trying to be discreet in your cubicle at work.  I'm squatting down in heels trying to be still and snap the picture.  "Why don't you have someone take it for you?"  Good question.  It felt right.  haha.  I'm a nut.

Workout Song of the Day:  "Work Out" by J Cole : http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/work-out/id464427218?i=464427547

Training Day 2

This morning's workout was a bike.... I just bought a new carbon bike and it is lovely!

Isn't it pretty?  My boyfriend's brother is an expert in the biking gear arena.  He put this bike together for me.  Thank you Dan-O!  The only problem is that I forgot to ask for a woman's seat. 

Needless to say this morning's bike was a little um... uncomfortable.  Okay not a little it HURT.  Yet another thing to add to the to do list. 

I've been doing a lot of precooked meals lately and it is a huge help when you are trying to fit in two workouts a day plus work.  Pinterest has been a big help with that.  Here is my favorite recipe so far:

Low-carb Breakfast muffins: pour egg beaters into a greased cupcake pan, then add toppings like - mushrooms, veggies, and meat. Bake them in the oven at 375-degrees for 30 minutes and let them cool. Pop them into plastic bags so that you can grab them easily in the morning.  (Pinned from this website to give credit where it is deserved: http://britmorin.com/page/4).    Tasty stuff!

Workout song of the day: "Sunrise" by Childish Gambino http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/childish-gambino/id466842536  (Hilarious comedian and talented musician... Donald Glover)

Ironman Training Day 1

So today is the day.... I begin training for my first full Ironman. Which means two workouts a day plus a nutrition plan. Nutrition plan is guided by Bob Seebohar's book Nutrition Periodization for Endurance Athletes. So for base training (up until March) no grains, potatoes, rice, etc. I'm trying to train my body to fuel itself from fat and not rely on carbohydrates. So my plate will look like 1/3 lean fats/ proteins and 2/3 fruits and vegetables.

Pre-season = base training.

Nutrition is important this time around because when I did my half Ironman last year I ate poorly and didn't see any fitness results. Pretty disappointing considering I averaged 9 hours a week of workouts per week from January-July.

Mantra: Eat for training fuel. Don't train to eat.
Goodbye Baskin Robbins!

Today I'm starting the day out sore from a 7 mile run yesterday (training for Tinker Bell Half Marathon 1/29/12) and from helping a friend dig a hole in their back yard. Sorry boring for my readers but I thought it would be useful to look back on at the end.

Cheers to a new year!

Does anyone else have any fun fitness goals they are looking to accomplish this year?

FITNESS SONG #1: "Hold On" by Rusko (feat. Amber Coffman)

Polar Heart Rate Monitors

So, I've been doing a ton of research on Periodization training amongst other things. Periodization training goes something like - off season, base training, build phase, pre-competition, competition.

In the simplest of terms: the key to losing "fat" weight is to train at a lower heart rate in base training. Once your heart rate goes over the aerobic threshhold your body requires carbohydrates to fuel you- which makes you crave more carbs rather than teaching your body to use the fat in your body for energy. A no brainer right?


(Not the best graph but you can get the ideal concept from it.)

My last heart rate monitor was a hand me down that wouldn't hold a battery charge. So, I did a ton of research to see what my next purchase should be. Polar was the big winner!

They seem to be at the top of the pack in trying to monitor all three sports of swimming, biking, and running at a comprehensive level while still being user friendly.

I bought the Polar RCX5. So when I'm trying to measure my outputs during a run and I want to know my mph, heart rate, distance, heart rate zones, calories burned etc. I can check it all on my watch. If I want to change the views of data all I have to do is wave the watch by my heart rate transmitter. Easy peasy! Also, they have made it very easy to switch between the different sports- no crazy button pushing there.


I'm still researching a ton on running plans, swimming plans, biking plans, and nutrition. But I'm happy to say my first big buy is marked off the list (Polar). I think I'll be pretty happy with it.

Now to buy a carbon bike. Stay tuned.

Oh a relaxing weekend...

The weekend prior to this was the first weekend that we didn't have anything planned on our calendars since the first week of June. So needless to say the weekend prior to this one... we did a bunch of cleaning and errands.

So this past weekend was nice. Pete went out and had a boys night without me so that I could watch Grey's Anatomy without catching any grief. (Fellow watchers... it's been a weird season so far huh?) Then we did a day of garage work and went out to eat with friends. Yesterday I went to the LA County Fair, which doesn't quite live up to the NC Fair memories of my childhood but it did have wine tasting. SO that was a plus. Then last night we went and saw Contagion.

Holy cow, I personally loved Contagion. I think it is exactly, exactly what would happen if a virus of that sort came about. It told a lot of human truths. My heart was definitely racing throughout it. The acting was phenomenal... but the cast was amazing so I doubted it could go wrong.

The big takeaway from it all makes me think that I should move out of this big city and go learn to be more self sufficient out in the country.

Good thing we've been taking survival classes. Did you know that yucca can be used as soap and as material to make a really strong rope? Pretty cool.

Ladies Night!

Okay so maybe a little misleading. By ladies night you think me and a bunch of girl friends went out to a bar or a movie and dinner or something. Nope, I talked a group of five of my girlfriends out to accompany me to Phase IV - Scientific Health and Performance Center for a lecture and a raffle.

Dr. Chris Renna, founder of LifeSpan Medicine, gave a lecture about women and sports. Very interesting stuff as the man is highly intelligent and spoke a lot about the chemistry of our bodies. It all sounded vaguely familiar from my days in school but I'm a little rusty. Here were my takeaways:
• You need to get proper sleep in order to prepare your body to WANT to exercise.
o Turn off all overhead lights by 9pm and read. If you are hungry after dinner
it is probably your body telling you that you are tired.
o Actually not a problem for me but I thought I'd share for the blogging
world. I know…. I'm lucky.
• Yikes! Type A and Type O blood cannot process wheat or dairy or peanut butter.
o This is going to be super hard for me. I can do without peanut butter no
problem. Apparently I can substitue any other nut butter and I'll be in good
shape. BUT NO DAIRY ! Oh my lord... this means no cheese, no yogurt, NO ICE CREAM! Wheat is going to be tough too but DAIRY, ah carumba.

If you have any good substitutes for dairy please let me know because right I now I'm not sure if I'll be able to do it.

Dr. Renna also said that the way America processes there dairy is bad for our system. A friend is letting me borrow a book on this. Apparently Europe dairy is ok. I need to find out what the difference is.

I had frozen yogurt and greek yogurt last night. Day 1 and I already failed.

I've done it! Ironman CDA here I come!

June 24, 2012 I will be doing my first Ironman race in Idaho! I'm currently engaged in reading all about nutrition at the moment.

When I did my first Half Ironman, Vineman, in July of 2011 I didn't suffer an Gastro-Intestinal distress but I have a feeling that they way I'm eating now is going to be a problem for a full day race. So, I'm barrelling down. I'm challenging myself to follow a periodization structure full with Heart Rate monitoring and a healthy diet that mirrors my training. I'll start into base training in December. Here's go nothing!

Hopefully I'll be all smiles like this lovely lady: