Yoga Strong, Yoga Fast

My next race is 7 weeks away. Two of my friends and I are doing the Diva run 5k in April in Myrtle Beach. We did the same race last year- except it was the half marathon. This year we are opting for short and fast- my style! 

Last year the winning time in my division was 26 minutes. If I train and put in my time, I know I can kill that. 

So here we go. Hopefully it starts warming up soon! Working so many doubles at work is really killing my running- and just my routine in general. This is still fairly new to me since taking my promotion to being the restaurant manager and catering coordinator. Love it, but getting home at 10pm and back up to work in the morning really hasn't let me do too many early morning workouts. Yes, I'm one of those sissys who needs her 9-10 hours of sleep to feel perfectly rested! 

I've been doing yoga almost every day now, and really enjoying it again. I've gone off and on the past few years- doing it 4 or 5 times a week for a few months, and then quitting almost a year. But tonight I'm doing it at night for the first time- just to really make myself get it in. As part of my race training, I still want to do yoga- even if it isn't long- every single day- and if I don't run that day, make sure part of my yoga is geared towards asanas that help runners. I WANT THAT MEDAL! 

Tonight, my poses are 

• low lunge (anjaneyaasana)
• downward facing dog (adobo mukha svanasana)
• squat (malasana)
• boat pose (paripurna)
• dancer's pose (natarajasana)
• upward facing dog (urdhva mukha svanasana)
• head to knee pose (paschimottanasana)
• Cow face fold (gomukhasana)
• Leg drains or legs up the wall (viparita Karani)

My flexibility has like... Vanished. The 9 year old gymnast-Erin really wants to kick 26 year old Erin right now. But another thing I want to bring into my life from yoga is meditation. I read the other day that 20 minutes of meditation is equivalent to... Oh I forgot. Sleep. You need less sleep. Or 1 hour of yogic sleep?? Is the same as 3 hours normal sleep. I could definitely go for that! 

Paleo Sausage Biscuits

I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed my breakfast this morning! Over the course of 2014, my parents and I all made the choice to change our diets to gluten free and then later, paleo. My parents went hardcore from the beginning and noticed significant changes in their health (more on that in a different post!) while I.... Had a few more cheat meals. Unfortunately for me, being a restaurant manager where we have some of the most AMAZING (aka, unbutton your pants fattening!) southern food makes it that much harder to eat right. 

This month, I am doing NO cheat meals, just to completely get gluten and toxins out of my body... And then I can reintroduce "cheat" foods later to see how my body reacts. 

The misconception with paleo (or gluten free too if you only wanted to make that change) is that everyone thinks you will be horribly limited in what you can eat, or it will taste bland and boring. NO WAY! This is the first time in my mom's entire life where she has enjoyed cooking- and it's because she's finally using real, fresh ingredients, and it tastes amazing. 

I want to keep sharing our recipes- but to start off, this is one of the most simple foods you could think of. And on a "diet" too! 

I can write another post later going into more detail, but animal fat IS good for you if you aren't also taking in processed fats! Seriously- my mom eats either sausage or bacon with her breakfast every morning and has lost 30 pounds she didn't even know she needed to lose. That's so contradictory to anything we've ever been taught. 

www.primalgirl.com

Click above- this is a link to the biscuits- we use tapioca flour! It does taste different, but I really prefer this to anything with refined flours! I also use this to make "yeast" rolls, crackers, and pizza dough... Yummm!! Paleo is only restrictive any boring if you don't do your homework! But as for me, I'm eating the most delicious food I've ever tried, and it's healthy! 

Hope if anything actually reads this hehe, you enjoy it! 

Half Marathon!

It has been a week since I ran my first half marathon. What an exhilarating experience. So many people, my mom included, asked me why I would want to put myself through it. Its hard on my body, especially with the trouble my IT band gives my knee. I paid $90 to register for it, and I didn't win any money. So why? Nobody made me.

Except that I made myself. There were so many times during my 12 week training period that I wanted to call it quits. With everything else going on in my life, this is the last way I wanted to dedicate my time. I had to take a lot of breaks to let me knee heal and rest, which was frustrating as hell. At the beginning of my 12 weeks, I wanted to give it all I had, and actually compete for a winning time. That's how I approach the shorter sprint races. I'm still new to running, having only run for a little over a year now, but I don't have fun racing unless I'm breaking PRs and placing. I'm hungry for a medal. I was never athletic in school. I cheered for my little league teams, but that was as far as it went. When I showed horses, I loved winning. I loved seeing hard work pay off. Now, I get the same feeling with running.

So after taking a lot of time off, I got to the point where I just wanted this stupid half to be over with. Just check it off my list, and be done. I didn't care anymore. My last few weeks up until the race, I didn't even do a long run on the weekends. I would run 2 or 3 miles at a time, maybe 2 or 3 times a week. When people would ask me if I was excited, I would tell them I was excited it was almost over. 

Even though I gave up caring about my finishing time, I knew that running 13 miles, no matter how slow, would still take a toll on me. I am so happy with my carb-loading experience. The 72 hours before my race, I ate over 430 carbohydrate grams a day. When they say to carb-load, it definitely doesn't mean eat some spaghetti and salad. Holy cow. 430 grams is a TON, incase anyone wasn't aware. I loved snacking so much though!! 

I'm also really glad I woke up at 3:00am to eat my final pre-race breakfast. I had some frequent marathoners disagree that waking up so early was necessary, but if I ever race a long distance again, I will definitely repeat the 3:00 breakfast. The only bad part is I never went back to sleep. While I laid there for the 2 hours before we got up to get ready, my mind must have wandered through about 30 different things. Not really what I had in mind. I raced on about 4 hours of sleep...but since I had carb-loaded and my pre-race meal was 100 grams of carbs, I have NEVER felt better during a run- energy-wise anyway. Not once did I get even slightly winded. Usually during my long training runs, I have to push myself through a wall around mile 4. Not this time. My body felt great, except of course my dang knee. It felt like it was going to snap off after the third or fourth mile. Not ideal, let me tell you.

I loved seeing all the funny signs the spectators- mostly guys with the best ones- had for us all along the course. The best ones were  "try not to suck," "remember, you PAID to do this," and "forget the race, forget the pace, lets just drink a case!" 

Around mile 10, while I was still feeling good, I knew I had it in me to speed up and finish strong. What I couldn't believe was that once I turned the corner and was making it down the last little stretch to the finish, with the biggest crowd possible on the sidelines, I went full out, as hard as I could....and nobody else made that hard push with me. No matter what my time is during a race, I will always be happy if I know I gave it all I had during that last bit to the finish and sprint my guts out. I want to know that I finished as strong as I could, despite the first leg of the race. Not that I am super fast, but I really couldn't believe nobody else was sprinting with me. But in all honesty, it made for a really cool finish, passing about 50 competitors on my last stretch of my first half marathon.

And yeah, I just said first. Before my race, I swore up and down I would never do another one, and DEFINITELY no full marathons. I would prefer to speed up my time for 5Ks. And that's true....but will I ever race another half? Yeah, maybe. I'm not addicted like everyone tried to convince me....but I would like to see how well I can do if my knee ever lets me fully recover to do another one.

We'll just see! After all, I'm only half crazy.

Oh and did I mention the perks of a Diva Run...?

Ladies and gentleman (but mostly ladies!): the fireman finish. This is who medaled me. A hunky fireman. Well, probably a model doing promotional work wearing fireman pants. Do I care? Heck no.

Plus, a champagne toast, cooooookiesssss (not a huge perk to normal people, but I hadn't had a cookie in 2 or 3 months! I ate 2, and got my professional finisher's photo holding up my cookie. I was one happy camper!), and roses. Plus, a pool party at the Baywatch Resort and tickets to the House of Blues. What an awesome day. I'm almost caught up on my sleep.

Half Marathon- Carb Loading

Finally leaving for the beach today after work with the girls. We are heading to Myrtle Beach, SC for our first half marathon, the Diva Run. Even though its only 3 hours away and a frequent vacation spot for us North Carolinians, it will still be a fun destination race to add to our growing list. 

One major thing to remember when running marathons or half marathons is your diet- CARB LOAD! Carb load like crazy. Eat a ton of carbs, and when you think you're full, eat some more. 

The reason for this is to stock your glycogen stores. That's probably one of the most lengthy topics I could write about, but for now, we'll keep it short and sweet. Your glycogen is stored in your muscle as fuel. All food you eat is either turned to glucose-which goes right into your bloodstream, or glycogen, which is stored for later. 

Here's some quick tips for carb loading before a race:

• You'll need 3.5-4 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight per day. Since I'm a smaller female, I leaned towards 3.5- giving me a grand total of 437.5 grams a day.
• Start carb-loading 72 hours out (my race is Sunday morning at 7:10am, so I started today- Thursday at breakfast)
• Carbs should make up 70-80% of your diet during this 72 hour period
• Limit fiber intake- high-fiber fruits and whole grains, for example
• On race day: pre-race meal should be eaten 3-4 hours to completely digest
• Pre-race meal: 15-20grams of both proteins and fats is ideal 

Some of the foods I included are quinoa, spaghetti, asparagus, and brussels sprouts. Lots of snacks too. All simple, but do the job! 

But more importantly......BEACHHHHH. Sun. and tanning. and listening to the ocean. Ahhhh. As soon as my race is over, I'm drinking a big Coors Light (or well, a normal size one, whatever) and all the seafood I can choke down. I haven't had a proper cheat meal in almost 45 days. It. Is. TIME. 

Fasted Cardio...Why even go there?

Hi, I'm Erin, and I have a love-hate (mostly hate) relationship with cardio. But, this half marathon I'm training for? Yeah, gotta fit in the extra cardio. Do I like it? Heck no. Would I rather be lifting something heavy, you betcha. But, gotta suck it up and do it. 

Got up this morning and got in fasted cardio. Here's the thing. If I've gotten enough sleep, I am your most obnoxious, cheerful morning person. But if I don't get my 8-9 hours of sleep, I am probablyyyyyyy comparable to the devil before I have my coffee. So with that said, I'm trying to get back in my morning routine of waking up at 5 and getting started. Anywhoooo. Yes. Fasted cardio.

For those of you who have never tried it, it actually is better than it sounds. Yes, you are up before your brain is, and you're working out before breakfast. But there's the key- do it before your brain realizes what you're doing! 

Here are  some of the benefits to fasted cardio:

• Burn extra calories throughout the day 
• Forces your body to use fat as an energy source (taps into those stubborn areas, like hips and thighs for women/lower abs for men)
• Burn more fat on empty stomach than with pre-workout meal hours beforehand
• While fasting and while exercising, your body releases HGH (human growth hormones), which prevents muscle being burned as an energy source 

This is from both researching the subject, and my own experience. This is totally just my opinion that fasted cardio is beneficial. Many academic types would argue it has adverse effects, and this has been a controversial topic for some time. While both sides have merit, I choose to believe it does have benefits from seeing results in myself. My advice to you? If you're really on the fence, check your own results. Just measure your body fat and calculate your lean mass. This goes for all aspects of fitness- the case studies are still fairly new, and all of the experts all have their own opinions based on their research. How do you know what to believe? Stick with what is working for you personally.

Whether fasting or not, to make your cardio count, you've got to add intensity. The joke about the girls who go into the gym and come out looking just as good as they went in- its true. You've got to work up a sweat and really work for those results, or they won't come. Its all up to you! I like to throw HIIT (high intensity interval training) workouts in my weekly routine at least 2-3 times a week. No one likes cardio, but it IS vital to every person's fitness journey, no matter the goals. 

Positive Advertising Verses Competitive Bashing

Here's my thought for the day; and I see this all the time, which is what inspired me to write about it. I think there's such a significant difference in marketing your business, verses bashing your competition. If your product or service is worth investing in, you shouldn't have to highlight the flaws of your competitors. This goes the same for politicians. I don't care how good your policies are, or your records...I will have so much more respect for you and a willingness to vote for you if you are concentrating more on showing the public what good qualities you can bring to the people, instead of bringing out the opposing team's dirty laundry. 

I am a consultant for Arbonne, and I love the company and the products. I stand behind everything Arbonne believes in because I have seen the high standards Arbonne stands by. Their integrity seems to be unmatched. We have no animal products or by-products, and it is 100% vegan certified. I could go on for hours on why I believe Arbonne is scientifically second to none. That difference is what made me start using the products in the first place- long before I made the decision to join the company. We have no rendered products, and I have personally seen life changing results in myself, my family, and my clients. I am tremendously proud of this company, and love sharing the products and what I have learned with others. 

Because of the biased opinion I've developed for Arbonne, it is safe to say you will not catch me buying other popular brands for very specific scientifically researched reasons. I do not, however, feel the need to point out those brands on my facebook posts, or mention the companies in my presentations. Arbonne International stresses greatly to we consultants a high code of ethics, another reason I love Arbonne. They do not want us pointing out flaws of other companies. We have products that speak for themselves, and there's just really no need. 

I tell you this, not to promote my Arbonne business, (but hey, if you want to check it out, who am I to stop you?)  but to show you that when you are truly passionate about whatever product you are selling, or service you provide, that is enough. Your passion shows. I am truly in love with Arbonne, and I believe that when I talk about Arbonne, the positive light will have more of an influence on my sales than if I went around bashing other companies. Sure, it can be tempting, but it is not as effective. Doing what is right always wins in the end.

Baked Crispy Brussels Sprouts

This is such a easy recipe. 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 
2. Cut Brussels Sprouts  in half lengthwise. 
3. In a bowl (or ziplock bag), add olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. 
4. Roll the brussels sprouts around in your mixture, and lay flat on a baking sheet. *I always put aluminum foil down, less to clean up later!
5. Bake around 20-30 minutes, depending on your oven! I like them a little brown on top, it doesn't mean they are burnt! I also turn the pan around about halfway through, just because my oven cooks a little uneven. 

So yummy and healthy, I normally eat them all right away!