My History of The Spring Lake 5 Miler

Running this race came about in 2001. I was working for a gas company and one of my co-workers ran the race every year. I thought it would be a great idea to train for it! So me an another co-worker decided we would run during lunch a few days a week to train for it. Enduring shin splints and every other ailment and despite my best intentions I never ran the full 5 miles before race day. To make matters worse, my co-worker/ training partner never met me at the starting line like she said she would! I was forced to run with my sister which is not a bad thing. It's just I wasn't used to running with her. I wanted to stop many times and give up but she wouldn't let me. I finished the race in 52:36. Not terrible! I was hurting pretty bad though. I couldn't get off the couch for the rest of the day. Just to give you all a great laugh I even have a picture. Yeah that's me with my eyes closed and looking like I would die. There's my sister next to me looking like it was so easy!

Well, in 2002 I was going to redeem myself. I obviously thought running a 5 mile race would be so easy. Maybe for some but running doesn't come easy for me. I really have to work at it. I watched what I ate and really dedicated the time. I ran 5 miles several times before race day. I even got a few more people from the office running. We had a group of 4 or 5 that would run during lunch. It wasn't long before there was an office competition. Who would run the fastest? Nobody put their money on me. That was their mistake! I ran it in 46:00. Here's a great pic of that! I'm such a pro, I'm checking my watch!

Many years had passed. I had knee surgery. Then I had my two children. Over the holidays I decided I wanted to run it again. My sister said she would do it with me and I thought that was a great idea. About 7 weeks ago, my sister fractured her ankle in a freak accident. She was sitting in a chair and her foot fell asleep. When she went to get up she heard a pop and there was her fracture! Weeks have gone by and she only started training for the race 2 weeks ago! She is a runner though and your body does remember so she has that on her side. So tomorrow I'm going to run with her and push her if she needs it because she did that for me so many years ago. That's what sisters are for right?

If it wasn't for her I may have given up. I may have told myself I couldn't do it and quit. Where would I be now? I may not be the positive minded person you all know!

You CAN accomplish anything you put your mind to!

Workout and Meals 5/22/09

Well folks, down to the final stretch! I'm ready as I'm ever going to be! Today was a hectic day. I wanted to make a few recipes so I can relax a bit this weekend so that meant doing a little food shopping and prepping. I am breaking tradition with the night before the race meal but it was 88 degrees here today. Not really in the mood for pasta and meat sauce. Here's how the day played out.

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediatly following syntrax nectar w/ 1 tsp glutamine
after shower - green drink w/flax oil, cup of organic coffee with 1% organic milk, organic sugar

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir w/a scoop miracle reds, serving of fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg whites, 1 egg w/black bean avocado salsa on top, a pear

4. raw sugar snap peas and cauliflower w/ 3 tablespoons hummus

5. 1/4 c black bean avocado salsa w/a few baked tortilla chips, turkey burger (no bun), dill potato salad (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/potato-salad-recipe/index.html), steamed broccoli

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch


Workout - MMA conditioning workout
bent over rows x8
military press x8
good morning x8
lunges x8
front squat push press x8
deadlift x8
1 minute rest and repeat

6 rounds with a 35 pound barbell for all in 23.53

Race day tomorrow then it's a whole new set of goals! Very excited!

Meals 5/21/09

I guess I don't have to set my alarm clock anymore. I woke up at 5:10 am this morning on my day off and really couldn't go back to sleep. The good news is that it was uninterrupted quality sleep which I needed. Here's what I ate for the day:

1. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine
green drink - organic kale, collards, spinach, celery, cucumber, ginger, apple, lemon juice, apple juice, flax oil, green tea

2. chobani plain greek yogurt w/scoop Miracle Reds, serving Mrs Mays fruit & nut crunch

3. 2 egg whites, 1 egg omlet w/2 tablespoons salsa, grape tomatoes, 1/2 avocado, a pear

4. raw sugar snap peas, broccoli, and cauliflower w/3 tablespoons Sabra roasted pine nut hummus (YUM!)

5. leftover turkey chili with 1/4 c rice, 1 piece raw cacao goji chunk, green tea

6. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine, nut and seed crunch

Instead of doing my regular weight workout tomorrow morning, I'm going to do the MMA conditioning workout minus the upright rows because I don't love that exercise. Also going to do front squat push presses in place of squat push presses because I am more comfortable with that exercise. I think a general conditioning circuit is perfect before this race on Saturday. Not looking for any serious DOMS before the run!

Here's the link for the MMA conditioning workout: http://buildingbodies.ca/exercise/randy-couture-workout-for-mma-conditioning/

Workout and Meals 5/20/09

I looked at my schedule this week and realized I didn't give myself a day off. Saturday is my usual day but I'm running this race. Tomorrow is looking like a great day for me to take off. I need to catch up on some sleep. My daughter was up and down last night with teething so I'm getting interrupted sleep on top of a busy training schedule. Here's how my day went.

a.m. - workout - Run 5 miles. Walked the first 3 minutes and still finished in 49.22. Nice!
1. on the way home from the gym - syntrax nectar w/ 1tsp glutamine
after shower - greens drink made with apple juice, flax oil, and green tea

2. vanilla greek yogurt, serving of Mrs Mays fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 egg omlet with 2 tablespoons salsa, grape tomatoes and 1/2 avocado, a pear

4. red pepper, cauliflower, sugar snap peas w/3 tablespoons hummus, green tea

5. chipotle turkey chili made with black beans, carrots, onion, corn and fire roasted tomatoes, 1/4 c rice, piece of raw cacao, goji chunk, green tea

6. cottage cheese snack pack, fruit and nut crunch bar

Workout and Meals 5/19/09

This is turning out to be a tough week for me. The last 2 weeks have been great so maybe it's all just catching up to me. I did manage to get up this morning and get in a good workout though.

Meals
a.m. - workout
1. immediately following - syntrax nectar w/1tsp glutamine
after shower - green drink made with apple juice, flax oil, green tea

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir w/a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of Mrs Mays fruit and nut crunch

3. tuna sandwich made with red onion, light mayo with 2 slices light brown rice bread, a pear

4. large plate of cauliflower, broccoli, sugar snap peas and about 1/2 c hummus, green tea

5. 3 oz salmon, 1/4 c rice, roasted asparagus, 1 organic raw cacao-goji chunk, green tea

6. snack pack cottage cheese, nut and seed crunch

Workout
5 mins bike and pop squats to warm up

straight set
squats - 1x8, 4x6 45, 55, 60, 65, 65

giant set
dumbell push press - 1x8, 4x6 10, 12, 15, 15, 20 this is a PR for me!
incline dumbell flye - 1x8, 4x6 10, 12, 15, 15, 20
bulgarian split squat - 1x8, 4x6 10, 12, 15, 15, 20
reverse grip pulldown - 1x8, 4x6 50, 60, 70, 70, 75
push ups 5x8

straight set
deadlifts - 1x8, 4x6 45, 65, 70, 75, 75

superset
decline sit up 3x8 - 8, 10, 25
plank hold 30 seconds - 3 sets

5 min bike cool down + stretching

I didn't have my watch so not sure how long it took but definitely less than an hour. I thought I was going to put two 20 lb dumbells through my basement ceiling this morning with those push presses. I was really throwing them up! I will say it takes alot of core strength to be able to throw a heavy weight over your head.

I am happy to say that I finally got to have a tuna sandwich today! The light brown rice bread is not bad at all. It's no mushy wonder bread more like a stale bread but I forget how portable a sandwich really is. I am used to rushing all over the place to get home before lunch. I don't mind taking snacks with me but lunch is tough.

Anyway, tomorrow is running 5 miles and I'll be happy when it's over. I'll be sure to post a pic of me and my sister on race day :).

Workout and Meals 5/18/09

Happy Monday everyone! This is how my day played out:

a.m. - workout - spin class :)
1. syntrax nectar w/1 tsp glutamine on the way home from the gym
after shower - green drink made with apple juice, flax oil, green tea

2. 1 c pomegranate kefir with a scoop Miracle Reds, serving of fruit and nut crunch

3. 2 egg white, 1 whole egg omlet with 2 tablespoons salsa, halved grape tomatoes, diced raw red pepper, 1/2 of an avocado, a pear

4. broccoli, cauliflower, sugar snap peas w/ 3 tablespoons hummus, green tea

5. 3 oz chicken breast, roasted asparagus, 1/4 c white rice, 1 piece of organic raw cacao goji chunks (my health food store makes these YUM! See ingredients below.), green tea

6. cottage cheese snack pack, nut and seed crunch bar

Tomorrow, I will be hitting the weights. I am taking the sprints out after just so I can be sure to get my 5 miles in on Wednesday morning.


Organic raw cacao-goji chunks - date paste, sunflower seeds, raisins, apricots, cacao powder, sesame seeds, sunflower meal, coconut, goji powder, coconut flavor, vanilla flavor w/other natural flavors.

Update for week of 5/17/09

Another week down! I am excited about the results of the fast. Looks like 2 pounds down since last week which is a big jump for me. I am concerned the bodyfat is the same but I am certainly glad it didn't go up. I can't worry about it until after I run this race. Then the focus will be on lifting heavy with cardio being secondary. That's where the real magic happens my friends! Here are the results of the week:

Measurements - last week (this week)
Height 5 ft 6
Weight 129.5 (127.5)
Bodyfat 21% (21%)
Waist 28 (28)
Hips 35 1/4 in (35)
Right arm 10 1/4 in (10)
Right bicep flex - 11 1/8 (11 1/4)
Right thigh 20 1/4 in (19 4/8)
Right calf 14 15/16 in (14 14/16)
Chest (at largest part) 31 1/2 in (31)
Chest (under) 27 1/4 in (26 3/4)

Very pleased with this week's measurements and already looking forward to next week's pics! Here is the training plan for next week:

Today (Sunday) - lift + run 4.5 miles
Monday - spin
Tuesday - lift
Wednesday - Run 5 miles
Thursday - lift
Friday - Run 3 miles or spin (depending on how I feel)
Saturday morning - 5 Mile Race
Sunday - OFF

I plan to take it easy as far as weights is concerned. My priority is to run this race with my sister and to not overtrain.

As far as diet is concerned, I bought plenty of great fruits and vegetables this week. Organic broccoli, cauliflower, red pepper, sugar snap peas, anjou pears, and strawberries in addition to my usual vegetables.

I don't usually eat bread because I avoid wheat but I did pick up a loaf of brown rice bread because I've been craving a really good tuna sandwich. You know with red onion, and celery chopped in it. I will be having that one or two days for lunch next week!

I have run a few races and the night before I always have spaghetti with turkey sausage meat sauce. This time it's going to be quinoa pasta with ground turkey breast meat sauce :). I can't break tradition but I CAN make it better!

As always lots of water and green tea and generally kickin butt!

I hope you are working closer to your goals next week!