Talking About Workouts

I was so excited to throw a post up last Monday all about my workouts. However, someone *cough* me *cough* got injured AGAIN!

Let's back up a little. Last I left off, I was training for the Halloween Half Marathon. Training was going well, I was certain I would beat my previous time, and WHAM! Knee and ankle pain hit me hard! I took some time off, R.I.C.E.'d, and focused on lifting with light cardio. After a week, I gave it another chance and it was a no go. I was extremely bummed about missing the half, but I didn't want to get injured further. So, I took off 3 weeks from running.

In the 3 weeks I took off, I decided that I wanted to focus on gaining speed and endurance. So, I downloaded a couch to 5k app. I was all set and ready to run.

The first workout was great. I did the walking parts in a light jog at a 5.0 on the treadmill and the running parts were at a 6.5. I felt terrific. Like I could run on that damn treadmill forever. The second workout was much the same.

The third workout I decided to pick it up a little. I did the jogging parts at varying speeds 5.2-5.8. The running I kept at 6.5. After the workout, I felt fantastic. This was last Monday. I came home and started getting ready for work. In the shower my back was a little sore, but I didn't think much of it. Throughout the day, I had nagging pain, but tolerable. By 5 o'clock, it was excruciating! I took a hot bath at 1AM, that didn't help. I iced and it felt a little better. Enough for me to get some sleep at least.

Tuesday and Wednesday I took ibuprofen every few hours, iced, and applied a heating pad to my back. Today is Sunday and it still isn't better! I mean, it's better, but not back to normal.

I don't know at what point I got the injury, and I am not sure it is from working out. I do know that I have taken the week off from working out, just in case. I just hope it isn't from running. I was just starting to love it again.

Tomorrow, I am going to go to the gym in the AM for some elliptical action. Depending on how I feel after that, will be what next weeks workouts look like.

Here's to hoping my back quits being a jerk!

Simple Paleo Eating

I don't have any pictures, but fully intend to take some this week. I have been eating fantastic and simple paleo meals for the past few weeks now.

Breakfasts

• Egg and Veggie scramble. Mushrooms, onions, tomatoes and spinach are my favorite mixes right now. Top it all with guacamole and add a side of turkey bacon. It makes the perfect filling breakfast! 
• Almond flour pancakes. I make my own almond flour, which I will blog about someday. Top it with fresh bananas and a touch of maple syrup. Again, add turkey bacon and you have another fun, filling breakfast.
• Turkey Bacon and hard boiled eggs. If I am in a pinch, I just take already hard boiled eggs and a side of turkey bacon. I top the hard boiled eggs with sriracha and it is heaven!!

Lunches

• Spinach, strawberries, chicken, tomatoes, and homemade paleo honey mustard dressing is soo good! I will blog about the honey mustard dressing. This mix is a current favorite right now.  I have it for dinner quite often too. 
• Chicken and Normandy vegetable stir fry. This is simple and so tasty. 

Snacks

• Grapes and almonds! I have been having this everyday this week and OMG...so freaking tasty. 
• Paleo approved bars, I have been loving the banana bread lara bars lately. 
• Bananas and almond butter are my favorite! I usually eat this as a dessert if I am craving something sweet. 

Dinners

•  Steak and veggies.  I love this because it is so easy and takes about 10 minutes. The last thing I want to do when I get home from a long, busy day at the office is make dinner. So, this is a typical go to.
• Chicken salad of some kind.  Most nights, this is what I do. The Boyfriend likes to eat breaded chicken tenders...daily! He basically lives off of them. So, I just throw in some defrosted chicken breasts and make up a salad and dressing while it is cooking.
• Salmon Salad. I put strawberries, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, and (occasionally) avocado in for the salad portion, then top it off with some salmon and homemade honey mustard dressing.

They are all so simple, I love it. Especially because it is the holiday season, which means the furniture industry is crazy busy right now. I love coming home and just getting simple meals ready.

I feel better, my skin is better and I am feeling healthier than ever! Tomorrow, I will be back talking exercise! Woohoo!

What are some simple meals you make? 

Big Motivators

When deciding to clean up my diet, I had some pretty big motivation to do so.

First, I realized that I was consuming so much more food than I needed for my body. I would finish dinner and be so full and uncomfortable. I felt sluggish all the time. Even though I was still working out at least 3 times a week, I didn't feel more fit or healthier. My clothes kept getting tighter. I realized I was eating serving sizes as large as my boyfriend. No wonder why I was gaining so much weight. 

Second, I started having some really bad gut issues. I would bloat. I had horrible gas(TMI, but it's true). I would wake up with a "sour stomach" almost every morning and after most meals. Never in my life, have I experienced the "sour stomach" to that extent. I remember thinking, 'What the hell is wrong with me? I have never had stomach issues like this.' It. Was. Awful.

Third, my skin. Oh, my skiiiiiiiinnnnnnnn! I have always had great skin. A breakout for me was 2 zits, seriously. My breakouts turned into zits all over my face nonstop.

And last, I realized everything I was eating was packed with sugar! I couldn't remember the last savory meal I had. Or the last meal where I actually tasted the true flavor of the food.

I finally reached a breaking point one day. I knew my weight gain was because of the food choices I was making(duh!). I came to the conclusion that my gut issues were due to the types of foods I was eating(*hint* I was right!). My bad skin was due to a new makeup I was using, but I knew my diet wasn't helping the situation. The sugar, well the sugar is because I am addicted to sugar and I didn't want to be anymore.

It is amazing that it took so much to get me serious about Paleo. I lost all of my weight while training for my 1st half marathong(<---Ha! I always type marathong.), I lost all my weight by eating really clean. So, it's not like it is totally foreign eating to me. It's just getting out of the habit and eating foods that are convenient.

Paleo

It is no secret that I have been wanting and trying to get to my goal weight for quite some time.

I found when I was training for my first half marathon, calorie counting worked for me, but this time around not so much.

My bestie did a whole life challenge and had amazing results.

I have wanted to try eating more paleo, but always thought it looked like too much work and I thought I would get bored with the food choices.

Let me tell you though, it is not boring at all! It is actually really fun.
Check out tonight's dinner

Excuse the iPhone photo. Ha! That is macadamia nut/shredded coconut encrusted tilapia with roasted veggies and honey mustard dipping sauce. The honey mustard was made out of homemade paleo mayo, mustard, and honey. It was simple, but delicious!

I have so many fun things I have been eating!
Paleo spaghetti
Chicken salad in butter lettuce leaves
Eggs sunny side up on salads
Nut butter and banana most nights for dessert
The list goes on and on.

I am about 75% paleo now. I would like to be more like 90-95%. It does take work, but it is worth it.

Since going paleo, I have lost 6 pounds in 3 weeks and I couldn't be happier with that.

I feel better about myself, my skin is clearing up, running has been easier, and I sleep better at night.

I look forward to sharing more meals with you soon.

On the running front, this week was good. It was a step back week. I love step back weeks. Sometimes my body just needs a rest. It was definitely ready for the rest this week. I do look forward to the 11 miles next Saturday.

I have been slacking on the lifting, but I look forward to getting back to it this week.

have you ever eaten paleo style?

what is your favorite strength training move? And what muscle group is your favorite to workout?

Once A Month Blogger

Has it already been a month since I ran 7 miles! Wow, time flies. Let me catch you up on the latest happenings!

• I am still training for the half marathon. My running in the past 2 weeks has slowed down a bit, but I am still feeling really confident. 
• I have started eating more "Paleo Friendly". I will have a whole post on that tomorrow. I am not 100% paleo, but come back and you will find out more ;)
• I went to the local farmer's market 2 weeks ago. 
• My Boyfriend had his 30th birthday!!! Happy Birthday, Sweet Cheeks! I love you!
• We went camping to celebrate!
• I had 10 miles scheduled on my training plan for when we were camping. I ran 7 of those and I am happy with that! 
• It is the busy season at work! I love the holidays, most stressful time ever at work. However, I love seeing my friends and family! 
• 
  

7 Glorious Miles

Okay, so it's been a while. I am still pretty much on top of half marathon training. I haven't done a weekly rundown, because I haven't really been tracking my workouts. I am gaining speed and my endurance is so much stronger after only a couple weeks of training. So, let's talk about my 7 miles from last week. 6 miles does not intimidate me, but 7,8,9....you get the idea, really does. I get anxious. I over analyze about it. However, once I do it. I crush it.

I woke up last Saturday ready to rock 7 miles, I hoped.

I was incredibly happy with how the run went. I felt strong. I walked when I wanted without beating myself up over it. I was faster at the end, which is how I hope the Halloween Half goes.

I am also going to be doing as much uphill and downhill in this training cycle as I can....

The first 5 or so miles of the halloween half are straight downhill. That is hard to train for. So, I am going to do what I can to get in as much hill training as possible.



I am happy to say that I have found my love of running again. It is fun to me and something I love.

Here's to tomorrow's hopefully great run!

My Baby Love Went To Heaven

This is a long one.......

The summer of 1999 was awesome. I was getting ready for my freshman year of high school. I remember having one of the best summer's of my life.

One day, my best friends sister came running up to me and said, "There is a cat under your house!". I thought she was messing around with me at first, but when I bent down to look in the opening under our deck, sure enough, I could see a cat. I tried to coax the sweet thing out and she would come close and then get spooked. So, I decided to leave her alone for the time being and just let her stay there.

The next time I tried, I was successful. Only because I sat out there by the opening and said what felt like a billion times, "Come here, Baby! Come on, Baby!". Eventually, she came right out and let me pet her and inspect her for tags. She did not have any identification. She also had been declawed. I felt so terrible for her. I knew at some point she had had a home with someone. I asked mom and dad if we could keep her and they said very firmly, "NO!". If you know me in real life, you know that I am very stubborn and I always try to get my way.

Over the next few weeks, I would leave cans of tuna out for her. I had to make sure she was fed, but I was just waiting for the day when she would find the person or family that loved her.

Then, it started turning into fall here in Utah. It was cold outside and I couldn't let the poor thing be out in it alone. So, I started bringing her in at night and during the day when mom and dad weren't home. She was so sweet. She was cuddly and playful. I always wanted a dog, but this cat would absolutely make the whole "dog as a pet" thing go away. I could live with having a cat! Ha!

I remember coming home one night to hear my family talking "baby talk" in the living room. When I turned the corner, there she was "Baby". My first thought was, 'Shit! I forgot to put her outside. Are they going to yell at me?'. Then my mom turned to me and said,"Tiff, we had to bring her inside, she doesn't have any claws. We can't leave her outside defenseless.".

After that, it was a sealed deal. I had my first pet.

My precious "Baby Love"

I later learned she was a calico and siamese mix. Her eyes were the brightest blue and she had a personality that wasn't like any other cat I had ever met. I used to always say she is my cat that acts like a dog, and she did. She came when you called her. I would yell up to her from the basement that it was bed time and she would run down stairs to cuddle up in bed with me. She wanted to go potty outside. She was the best!

In a lot of ways, she saved me. I went through some pretty difficult emotional struggles in my teens and into my early 20s, but I always had my Baby Love. She knew when I was down and would always come rub up against me. She would let me cuddle her like a little teddy bear when I would be bawling and inconsolable. She definitely put a smile on my face.

I love her so much! She definitely turned me into a crazy cat lady. Whenever she would walk into a room, I would stop whatever I was doing and start calling to her and talking to her. Haha! I might have been a little crazy obsessed in love. 

When I moved in with Chad, she stayed at my parent's house. I would still go and see her from time to time, but not nearly as much.

Last Wednesday, my dad asked me to call him and when I did, he said it wasn't good news. Baby had been sick for a couple of days. He had to crawl through some furniture in their pool house at 4AM to bring her inside. Once she was inside, all she would want is to be outside. She was too skinny, very frail and stopped responding when called to. My dad called a local vet and asked what could be the problem. They told him with all of the symptoms she has, it sounded like the best thing to do for her was put her down.

So, after work, I headed to Dad's house for my final goodbye to my sweet girl. We cuddled, I cried, I talked to her, I thanked her for finding me, and I kissed her a thousand times. Also, we took 1 final picture together on the car ride over.

I walked into the vet's office, not quite prepared for what was to come. I have never had to do this before! They took Baby Love into the back room to put her catheter in. Then, they brought her back to us. She laid on the table and I cuddled up to her for the final time. Within seconds of the shot going into the catheter, my Baby was gone. She looked so peaceful and beautiful.

My Dad went and picked up her ashes this past week. Now, Baby Love is home!

Baby Love,

I miss you so much! Thank you for being my best friend and the best cat a girl could ever have. I love you forever and always. I will see you again someday, Princess.

Rest In Peace!
Love,
Your Momma