A Little Advise Please!!

I need a little advise.  For the past few years I have enjoyed doing a long run every Saturday, these runs have always been my favorite run of the week.  Everyone has always said how crazy it is that I do a long run every week but I truly LOVED it...that is until a few months ago.  Ever since my last marathon in September my LR's have been HORRIBLE!  I may have had an okay one in there somewhere but for the most part they have not been good.


I went from craving and loving the LR to DREADING it :(  The biggest problem is that I keep thinking maybe I should just miss a long run or two and give my body a little break.  Why is that a problem you may ask...well, I am currently training for a marathon!  A marathon that today as I was running all I could think was "forget this stupid marathon crap, I never want to run one again!"  That is not like me, the marathon has always been my favorite distance to run.

Just look at that goofy smile, I had it on my face for 26.2 miles!

What has happened to my love for distance?

My runs during the week feel great, I usually do between 7-9 miles 4 days a week and I do a spin class once a week to give my legs a break from running.  At this point I almost think that it's all in my head but I don't know how to get past that.  This morning as soon as I got out of bed my legs felt like they weighed 600 lbs.  I took my SportLegs and hoped for the best but the best never came.  Don't my SportLegs know that they should do their job...RUDE ;)


Truth be told I have been stuck on a treadmill for these past few months and maybe that has had something to do with it.  Of course in the past I have always done my LR's on a treadmill in the winter.  For some crazy reason going out in the lone dark night in the FREEZING cold just hasn't sounded like much fun.  I wish I could sleep in and go a bit later...you know like when it gets light.  But having kidlets kind of requires me to be a mom so I can't be gone all day.  Plus, we are in the middle of gymnastics competition season so most Saturdays I am in a rush to get home so that I can get the beautiful children of the corn off to their meets.


Have any of you ever gone through something like this...that has lasted this long???

If my marathon is on a Monday should I start doing my long runs on Mondays?  I always have great runs on Mondays, probably because Sundays are the day of rest so I'm all refreshed and ready to run.

Any suggestions you can give would be greatly appreciated.  And none of this stop running talk, I paid $150 to run this marathon and I will NOT miss it!!

Sorry to bore you to death with my non-sense :(

Go With the Flow!

I’m in love, I’m in love and I don’t care who knows it!  Of course, I’m in love with Jake but I am also in love with my new Brooks Pure Flow running shoes.  I have known for some time that I have wanted to work my way into a more minimalist shoe but quite frankly I have been scared, me scared?  Shocking I know, I mean seriously I’m not scared of anything (I’m really scared of just about everything) ;)  I have been scared because I have heard horror stories about people going minimalist and getting injured and that’s the last thing I want right now, after all today marks the first day of my BOSTON marathon training.  (Actually I wrote this a few weeks ago but never posted it and the marathon training is going GREAT...I know you were all dying to know ;)

The second I tried this wonderful shoe on I knew I had to have it.  I kept putting it off because A. I had just gotten my Asics Nimbus, which I still love.   And B. I was scared!  I work at a shoe shop as most of you are well aware, so these shoes just kept taunting me.   When I FINALLY decided that I had to have these shoes I was sad to find that we had sold my size, at least I thought.  To my very pleasant surprise as I was looking through the shoes at the American Fork store I stumbled upon my shoes!!  YAY!!  They hadn’t been sold they had just been transferred, the A.F. store didn’t get any of these little beauties…sad day for them ;)

My first run I was expecting to have to change shoes mid-way through my run.  After all, I am used to my Nimbus which I believe have a 12mm heel to toe drop and these only have a 4 mm heel to toe drop.  I finished my 7 mile run and felt awesome, I could definitely feel my calves working a little more which I love because who doesn’t want juicy steaks for calves?  I do!!

These shoes are very light weight you can feel your run rather than float through your run.  The people at Brooks compare running in their Pure line to driving a motorcycle rather than a luxury car.  With a motorcycle you connect with the road, feel the curves and become a part of your ride.  Whereas, with a luxury car you float along in comfort just like in my Nimbus.  Both shoes have their place.  For me, my Nimbus are used on my long runs and my Pure Flows are used on shorter running days.

Working at the shoe shop I have learned the importance of rotating your shoes.  Of course, when my boss first told me that everyone should have 2 pairs of running shoes I thought “Sure, you just want more money!”  Sorry for the honesty put that’s what I thought.  So being the stubborn gal that I am I went home and did a little research of my own.  I am sure that all of you runners out there already know this but it really is important to have at least 2 pairs of shoes to rotate through.  For those of you who don’t know this let me explain.  You see when you run in a shoe the cushioning becomes compressed and it takes about 36 hours for it to fully decompress.    If you are running in the same shoes day after day you are never allowing them to decompress which will make the foam  break down faster than it should.   So your shoes will last longer for two reasons.  1. You are not wearing them every day so it takes you twice as long to put the usual 500-600 miles on them.  And 2. You are allowing the shoes to decompress which makes them last longer.

I also think it is important to have two different shoes so that you are working different muscles.  My Pure Flows are going to work my legs just a little differently than my Nimbus’.  With the Pure Flows I am landing more mid-foot.

Here are some important features of the Brooks Pure Line:

Ideal Heel: This aligns your body for optimal spring in every step it helps you land more mid-foot rather than on your heel.

Toe Flex: Empowers your natural balance for a powerful push-off.  As you run you should be rolling off of your foot so that you are pushing off of your big toe and this helps you do that.

Nav Band: This wonderful little band wraps your foot for a perfect fit.  It feels like your foot is getting a little hug.

Anatomical Last: The shoe contours your foot, your foot has room and your toes don’t feel squished together.

BioMoGo DNA:  Tunes to your stride with adaptable cushioning.  This shoe is SUPER comfortable, you can feel your run without FEELING your run, if that makes sense.  I feel the run without feeling like I don’t have the cushion that I need and want.

I hope I haven’t bored you to DEATH but I truly love these shoes and thought everyone should know about their awesomeness J

What are your most favorite running shoes?

Brooks Pure Flow’s and Asics Nimbus

Do you rotate your shoes?

I do now…I’m a little slow but I catch on eventually

CAUTION: Treadmill in Motion!!

I guess karma wanted to teach me a lesson this fine Thanksgiving Day.  A few days ago a co-worker told me about a gal who flew off the treadmill while doing the gait analysis.  I laughed hysterically and wondered how on earth that could even happen.  Well, although my experience was a little different I now see how one could fly off a treadmill.

After Holly and I finished up our leg workout we headed down to the "shoe shop" for a little Thanksgiving Day 10 mile run.  I was running along when I decided I wanted to dump out my electrolyte drink and get water so I pushed what I thought was the STOP button and hopped off.  Apparently, I pushed the FAN button not the STOP button.  I filled my water and attempted to get back on the treadmill.  Now let me just say that it was dark, I just have the T.V.'s on and no lights and the movie was turned up really loud.  So I couldn't see a whole lot and I heard nothing.  Anyways, I stepped onto the treadmill while drinking my water and suddenly I was eating the treadmill, I guess I wanted a pre-feast snack.  I couldn't figure out what on earth was happening.  I kept trying to get up and wondered why I couldn't, I soon realized that there was no way I was getting out of the situation so I gave up and let the treadmill take me where it may.  I rolled across the Shoe Shop floor and my water went flying.  I was laughing uncontrollably and looked up at Holly, she was looking at me like "what the heck are you doing?"  She thought the treadmill was off too and couldn't figure out what was happening.  I decided we had better take some reenactment pictures so that I could share this exciting morning with you.  Enjoy!

BAM!!  I literally ate the treadmill, luckily I didn't get treadmill burn on my face :) I got it lots of other places though!

Somehow I ended up sideways, threw my water and started rolling..

and rolling! These aren't the most flattering photos ever but oh well!

I think our reenactment photos are quite accurate and hilarious!  Even though I didn't see myself, when I finally composed myself and started running again I kept picturing the whole thing.  I could not stop laughing and let me tell you it is hard to run and laugh at the same time.

I got a little beat up

The pictures don't really do it justice...it hurt!  Well, it actually didn't hurt right away but after a few minutes my leg, hand, elbow and shoulder started burning.  That darn machine took my skin clean off!

It definitely made for an entertaining morning and don't worry Mr. Bell I have written up and signed a waiver ;)

So what did I learn from all of this?  Well, first of all I need to learn not to laugh when others fly off treadmills or anything else for that matter.  Secondly, I now know to make sure that the treadmill actually stops when I tell it to.  My kids now believe me when I tell them that treadmills are dangerous and not to be played on.

We ran 10 miles and from the very beginning I was just not feeling it.  I am so grateful that as much as I wanted to quit I didn't.  I pushed through and I didn't even let that treadmill bucking me off get to me.  Now I can go enjoy Mama Jex's feast without feeling guilty.

Here are a couple small things that I have been grateful for today.  As I was getting ready I had the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on and Avril Lavigne came on and sang the song that made me think of my dad during the Utah Valley Marathon.  Today is definitely a day that I wish I could see my dad.

As I sat down to write this post my favoritest show of all time, Three's Company, came on.  Oh, that Jack Tripper cracks me up and he has always reminded me of my step-dad Mike.  I'm not really sure why but he has.

Lastly, I'm so grateful that Mama and Papa Jex are willing to make a huge Thanksgiving Feast for just the 6 of us.  I guess my sis and her kids aren't coming until dessert.  So thank you Mama and Papa Jex for going through all of that work just for us.

Have you ever flown off a treadmill?

I have now :)

What are your Thanksgiving Day plans?

Did you get a workout in this fine day?

I hope that my little treadmill mishap has brought a smile to your face :)

Food is Fuel!

Let me just start by saying that Halloween has done a number on me. 

Here we are with the Garcia's after trick or treating.  This is the day that started my downward spiral ;)

For some crazy reason I have had ZERO self-control this week.  I am usually pretty good at choosing healthy foods that will fuel my body to perform the way that I want it to.  This week I caved into temptation with candy that normally wouldn't tempt me AT ALL!!  The problem is that I go to work all day and barely eat anything and by the time I get home I am a ravenous beast.  The candy has been in my face, as my kids can't put anything away, and it's quick and easy.  I have been replacing my meals with candy, cookies, donuts and pretty much any garbage I could stuff into my pie hole.  I would eat crap and then feel guilty about it so I wouldn't really eat dinner, I would make a smoothie, this post has the recipe, and call it good.  I went to the gym every morning and weighed myself and when I wouldn't gain weight I continued to feed myself garbage.

I honestly felt like crap the whole week, my workouts suffered and I felt bad about myself.  Although my weight didn't go up I felt like a fat cow.  Last night as I was conditioning the older gymnasts one of the girls asked me if I "diet."  I told her that I never diet but that I try to make healthy choices, I then explained that I had not made such good choices this past week.  She said, "who has??"  I realize that it's completely normal to cave into temptation sometimes but we MUST have moderation in all things.  That is what I haven't done this week.  I usually don't deprive myself if I am really craving something but I try to keep it under control.

We must use food as fuel.  I have noticed that when I make healthy choices and eat right that I have a lot more energy throughout the day.  I am amazed that I have the energy that I do when I usually only get 6 and a half hours of sleep.  This week however, I had very little energy.  My workouts were not good, I almost feel asleep in spin class on Wednesday for heaven's sake :)  I took a nap which I rarely do and have been a bit of a slug all week.  Throughout the week it didn't really hit me as to why I felt so fatigued.  This morning as I was struggling through my 14 mile run I realized that what I had been putting into my body was causing me to feel this way.  I guess the old saying is true: "You are what you eat."  When I eat good, healthy foods I feel good but when I eat CRAP I feel like crap!!

It's important to fuel our bodies with whole grains, protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats.  I try to stay away from sugar and anything white as much as possible.  There are some great treats out there that are sugar free, but be careful because there are also some out there that will do a number on your gut ;)  But that is a story for another time...or not!!  Some of my favorite sugar free treats are Jello, Jello pudding, Sugar Free Stephen's Hot Chocolate and I have a chocolate, banana, peanut butter smoothie that is quite delicious.  I buy the Adam's all natural peanut butter so there is no added sugar and it is FABULOUS!!!  If you are like me and you like to have something sweet after dinner try fruit, it seems to work for me most days.  I found THIS that I really liked, I didn't watch the video but scrolled down to the text.

Here is a picture of a good mix.  Pizza with whole wheat crust, veggies, turkey sausage and turkey pepperoni, Cantaloupe, Salad and Chocolate donuts.  I think treats are fine in moderation and after you've had a good meal so that you are filling up on the good stuff, leaving little room for the treats.  This was a my go to pre-race supper for my summer races.

Sorry if I have bored you to death but this has been on my mind all day!

Do you notice a huge difference in how you feel depending on what you eat?

Do you struggle with making good choices and then beat yourself up about it?

Halloween Half Marathon!!

Today was spent running 13.1 miles while looking at all sorts of crazysauce people in costumes.  I have never been so entertained and loved every minute of it.  Holly and I decided to be twiners and I think we looked quite dashing ;)  We chose not to participate in the costume contest but thoroughly enjoyed watching those who did.  People are quite clever!

Due to the slow speed at which people were using the Honey Bucket's we ended up near the back of the first wave of runner's.  I usually try to be near the front because I can't stand being behind slow people.  The first 3 miles were spent at a pace much slower than I would have liked to have been at.  I tried to use the mad driving skills of Jake as I weaved in and out of people.  Although I hate when Jake cuts people off, I must admit that I did a lot of that.  People probably wanted to trip me or something but I had to get out of the crowd.  So if I cut you off I am truly sorry :)

This race went so fast I looked down at my Garmin and was so surprised to see that we were already at mile 10, it was an amazing run.

Going into this race I didn't have any goals.  I was really afraid that running in a hot hat and tutu would drive me crazy.  I also didn't want to go too fast down that mountain and injure myself.  I wanted to go and enjoy it and that's exactly what I did.  Holly and I ran it together and had a great time.
I finished in 1:37:30 with an average pace of 7:27, placing 10th in my age group.  This wasn't my fastest time by a long shot but I had fun and that's all that matters :)

It's VERY important to stretch after a race :)  Jake thought I was weird but oh well!

Poor Kenna was stuck at gymnastics and was so sad to have missed this race but we had to get a picture in front of the hearse :)

This race was AWESOME and I can't wait to do it again next year.  I love the shirt and medal!!  Would it be weird to wear a Halloween shirt year round?

Did you do this race and if so what did you dress up as?

Is it weird to do a race and not actually "race" it?

I think not, it's much more fun that way :)

Active HeadBands Winner!

And the winner is.....Rachelle Wardle! 

True Random Number Generator
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Result: 5

Congratulations Rachelle, it looks like you can get your green zebra striped headband :)  I just need your email address so I can let Active Headbands now that you won!! 

I guess since I am already signed in I may as well do a post.  Last week we went to California for a little family vacation.  It was so nice to get away from all of the stresses of life and just relax...or not  ;) and have fun!  Jake got to fly down for work so the kids and I hitched a ride with the Garcia's.  I was real nervous about driving all the way to San Diego with 5 kids but they were actually really good.  Jackson who is 2 is the craziest little guy and oh so entertaining.  He was driving Holly crazy but Kenna and I found him to be quite hilarious :)

 

I don't know about you but I LOVE to workout on vacation.  When we got to San Diego I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Hyatt Regency had an AWESOME little gym.  Sunday night I did a quick little shoulder workout just for fun.  Monday morning Holly joined me and we did chest, triceps and abs I then ran 10 miles.  This was really the first time that I have felt like I had a good run since my marathon.  It felt amazing and I was glad to be back to normal.  I had read that however many miles your race is that's how long it takes to fully recover, so 26.2 miles will take approximately 26 days to fully recover. So I guess that was just about right.    As much as I wanted to run outside it was dark and I didn't want to go and get myself lost so I stuck with the treadmill.  Monday the kids and I went with the Garcia's to Sea World where we met up with the Prestwich's, Jake was busy with work.  I decided that the Shamu show isn't nearly as exciting now that there isn't the risk of someone getting eaten during the show ;)  We had a lot of fun and afterwards we met Jake at BJ's for some dinner.  Here is where I was introduced to my new love...PIZOOKIES!!!  Don't worry Jake is fine with it :)  If you've never had a pizookie you must drive to the nearest BJ's and get one...I don't know where the nearest BJ's is but trust me it's worth the drive no matter the distance!!!

Tuesday we started the day with a little back and biceps and I ran 14 miles and again it felt great.  I knew I was heading to Disneyland where they have the most delicious cookies and I was going to partake :)  I finally found a cookie after hours of searching...California Adventures had some remodeling going on and I couldn't find my favorite little store with the cookies but after studying my little map I found a new place :)

Wednesday morning we were in a new hotel by Disneyland and they had treadmills but no fancy machinery so I just busted out 8 miles and called it good.  Disneyland was awesome, it wasn't very busy which was a nice surprise.  And Kobe actually went on EVERY ride...that never happens.  I don't know that he will ever go on a few of them again but I was proud of him for at least trying them.

Thursday morning I did hill repeats for 5.25 miles and finished up with 8 miles total.  Then it was off to Disneyland/California Adventures for one last day :(

Friday morning I ran 10 miles knowing that I was going to be stuck in the car all day, meanwhile Jake was enjoying his quick flight home.  We went to Seal Beach for a little bit and then it was off to St. George.  Saturday Holly and I went to the Gold's in St. George and did abs and I ran 8.25 miles.  It was nice to know that each day I got a workout in and I could enjoy my cookies without any guilt.  I ate a total of 1 Pizookie and 3 Disneyland cookies and let me tell you they were delicious!!  We were there for 3 days so at least they were spaced out right?!? 

Do you workout on vacation?

I DO NOT take vacations from working out...I love it too much for such craziness :)

Have you ever had the pleasure of enjoying a pizookie?

If anyone knows of a BJ's close by please keep that information to yourself, such goodness should only be enjoyed on vacation ;)

GIVEAWAY!!!!

So I told you a looooong time ago that I had a company offer to give away a $30 gift card on my blog.  I have been stubborn long enough!!  I never believed Jake when he told me how stubborn I was but lately I am starting to see what he means ;)  I said I wasn't going to do it until I got 50 followers but oh well, here it goes.  Take a look at the picture below and try to figure out what I could possibly be giving away...here's a hint it's NOT Kobe, although the day I took this picture I would have given him away ;)

Here is the original picture that I showed you months ago, let's see if you can figure it out with both pictures.

NO??  Okay the company is Active Headbands.  I absolutely LOVE their headbands, they are so cute and I wear them daily.  They really do stay in place and keep my hair somewhat under control.  They have a great selection and they are very easy to work with as a company.  I have an extremely pea sized head, I know it doesn't look like it but it really is ridiculously small.  While placing my orders I simply tell them of my quandary and specify the size the headband should be.  They make them special just for my freakishly small noggin.  They ship out really fast!!!  My daughter also loves to steal my headbands, they aren't just for running ;)

There are many ways to enter!!

1. Become a follower of my blog :) And leave a comment saying you did.
2. Become a follower of their blog HERE!  And leave a comment saying you did.
3. Like Active Headbands on Facebook HERE!  Leave a comment on their Facebook page and comment on my blog saying you did.
4. Follow them on twitter and leave me a comment saying you did.
5. Go to their website http://www.activeheadbands.com/ and leave a comment telling me what your FAVORITE headband is.
And last but certainly not least you can post this giveaway on either your blog or Facebook page.

I will chose a winner on October 23rd.  I know that is a long ways away but I will be out of town for a while so please bare with me :)  Of course, there are so many ways to enter it may take you that long to finish all of your entries ;)