July- The month of new adventures


Looking Back: July was another month of change and moving forward. I feel good about the decisions I have made and new things I have done. Both mentally and physically I am feeling much better. I think the stress of being a job I wasn't happy with resulted in extra stress at home and me not being the best parent.   
  • Running: 185 miles Including a Half Marathon (5 Mile), Relay and 5K
  • Biking: 6.5 hours + 41 miles outside
  • Strength: 2x week with new trainer and 2x week boot camp
  • Pilates or yoga 1-2x week including my 1st reformer session
  • Made a huge career decision (yes again!)
  • Spending time as a SAHM and I am happy to say I am getting better at it
  • I am still Gluten/Dairy Free besides the minor setback while travelling and have made it cereal free for 6 weeks and have survived but still need to find more options. No more belly bloat or pain and I am down 4 lbs without trying.
  • I have yet to take my NASM CPT test and DNS the 50K...boo!


    • Looking Ahead: I just have a good feeling about things to come in August, it is my birthday month after all!
    • PR at half marathon (at least beat previous time this year 1:42)
    • Pass NASM CPT
    • Plan workouts and stick with the plans. This will help as I transition back to work.
    • Plan meals and snacks and try to stick with it. Work more on further cutting out processed foods, especially for snacks.
    • Do weekly Boot Camp Challenges (this week water intake)
    • Swim at least 1x weekly
    • Continue with Boot Camp and strength training
    • Make each run count, no more junk miles!
    • I will also participate in the August Healthy Living/Fitness Challenge to write daily.
    20120728-000729.jpg

    Day 1: Your 5 favourite workout songs and why? The reason for all is they are upbeat and push me and often have a fun memory associated... 
    • Black Eyed Peas- I Gotta Feeling
    • Pitbull- Back in Time
    • Green Day- American Idiot
    • Beck- Loser
    • Pearl Jam- Even Flow (A renewed favorite after meeting Mike McCready last Summer)

    Comments

    1. cherelliAugust 1, 2012 at 8:12 AM

      I find breakfast the hardest too, unless you can find gluten free oats to make porridge (soak in cocnut milk overnight, yum)...I find I end up having dinner leftovers, hardboiled eggs, some savoury rice mix...I did miss my cereal for a while and enjoy it occasionally but now find it very sweet. Have a wonderfully successful birthday month!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 7:55 PM

        I have been doing a banana oat protein cake thing lately or GF toast with fruit, but do miss the ease of cereal some days.

        Delete
    2. fancy nancyAugust 1, 2012 at 8:13 AM

      LOVE Pitbull!!!

      ReplyDelete
    3. SandraAugust 1, 2012 at 8:48 AM

      Your july is very inspiring! Good luck with your August goals :)
      I am doing the August Healthy Living/Fitness Challenge too!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 7:56 PM

        Thanks! I feel great about July and excited about what's ahead.

        Delete
    4. Sarah KAugust 1, 2012 at 9:37 AM

      I love American Idiot. That whole album is amazing.

      ReplyDelete
    5. Running LibrarianAugust 1, 2012 at 2:11 PM

      looks like you had a great July! Wow!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 7:58 PM

        Thanks, I am happy with how things are going :-)

        Delete
    6. RunningWithSass.comAugust 1, 2012 at 2:19 PM

      love black eyed peas, great list! congrats on doing well in July!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 7:58 PM

        I have so many Black Eyed Peas songs on my playlist.

        Delete
    7. AnonymousAugust 1, 2012 at 2:35 PM

      Wow- awesome July! Good luck with your new career decision. Things have a way of working out.
      What did you think of the reformer?
      Oh, and Happy Birthday! Mine is the 6th :-) Summer babies are the coolest :-)

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 7:59 PM

        So true, things always work themselves out in the end :-)
        The reformer was more worko then I thought! It will be a good way to stretch and get core work in.
        I am the 22nd, happy birthday :-)

        Delete
    8. SamanthaAugust 1, 2012 at 4:02 PM

      You had a busy July and August looks so much fun!! Awesome job!!
      PS check out my blog.. I think youll like what you see :)

      ReplyDelete
    9. DebbieAugust 1, 2012 at 4:50 PM

      What a great July! Keep it up in August :-)

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 8:00 PM

        Thanks, hoping the motivation and good mood continues :-)

        Delete
    10. UnknownAugust 1, 2012 at 6:17 PM

      What a heap of goals, and goals you've already achieved! You're clearly a motivated woman! Well don :-)

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 1, 2012 at 8:01 PM

        Thanks! I strive on competing with myself and reaching what I work towards, goals always motivate me.

        Delete
    11. mmmonykaAugust 2, 2012 at 5:49 AM

      I ate a whole 300g Milka Toffee Nuts chocolate for breakfast yesterday (and a youghurt). But you would probably not consider this as a breakfast option, would you?

      Can you eat some youghurts or not at all? Youghurt with fruit pieces is great. Although I need to eat a lot of it to keep me full until lunch. I also eat bread with butter/cheese and vegetables (tomatoe, radish, pepper etc) for breakfast. Or bread with mustard and salmon and veggies.
      We did not have any sweet cereals when I was growing up as a kid so I am not used to them for breakfast. One of the perks of growing up in a socialist country:)

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Coach JenAugust 2, 2012 at 7:58 AM

        Considering I can't eat chocolate, not a great option for me but sounds good :-) I can eat some yogurt and often have it mixed with fruit and/or granola for a snack. I think I need to get out of the thoughts of typical breakfast foods and expand my thinking. The bread with veggies and cheese sounds good :-)

        Delete

    Post a Comment

    Popular posts from this blog

    GoMacro Thrive Review and Giveaway!

    Image
    All runners know that post marathon week(s) are filled with the fight to keep eating healthy yet indulge a little. I try to carry healthy snacks wherever I go to avoid the munchies. Needing gluten free makes finding healthy foods quick even tougher. I have my go to foods but love finding new options with such variety. I think my only complaint is the carb to protein ratio which for each bar is 3 or 4:1. I prefer a snack more along the 2:1 carb to protein ratio. To help this I add a few extra nuts to the bars when I have them for a snack, problem solved! Like all GoMacro products, Thrive are USDA-Certified Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified, Kosher, Gluten-Free certified, 100% Vegan, and soy-free. Thrive is currently available to purchase online and will become available to Whole Foods this month! GoMacro is offering 30% off to all my readers with code Thrive30 for online purchases Here The Thrive Bars come in 6 flavors: Caramel Coconut, Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip, Blueberry
    Read more

    A few Races...

    Image
    Stillwater half was my final pre-marathon race. The weather was a mess, hot humid and gross! I ran with the 1:40 pacer to keep a nice pace and actually held myself back the first haf but yikes then we turned to the road and no shade and it all faded! I struggled to keep the "easy" pace as did everyone around me. I was happy to finish just 45 secs behind the pacer 1:40:45 and not too far off my goal of 1:38. That heat was brutal... Photo credit Stillwater Gazette Grandmas Marathon  For those who don't follow me on IG  @marathonmom28  here is the short version... I started great, on pace to PR then I became hypothermic (yes in June) and once the rain started it was painful (thank you Raynaud's). I finally walked off the course between mile 19-20 where Matt met me with dry clothes and a warm car. Grandmas this is strike 3, I think I am done!  I spent the car ride home thinking of next races and wondering if I could jump back in, (dumb I know). As we drove
    Read more

    Turkey Day 5K

    Image
    We have run this "race" many times, through name and sponsor changes, course changes and nasty weather. This year I went into it with hopes of a PR considering the perfect weather, but I failed to think about the massive amounts of people who would decide to run now that it wouldn't be too cold. I'm not sure the exact numbers but there had to be well over 5000 people, many who had no clue how to line up for a race. I lost track of the extreme numbers of walkers, kids, strollers and dogs I passed after it took almost 10 minutes to cross the start line! I spent much of my time weaving and trying not to trip over dog leashes or people stopping in mid course. I pleased to hit Mile 1 with a 7:40, still 1 minute over where I hoped but I figured much slower given the conditions. I finally found a guy to follow who making a path through the course and was able to hold that pace with a little trail running through the downtown parks. I didn't care since it was Nove
    Read more