A New Start

Good evening! Hope you've had a good start to the week.

Today's post marks the start of something a little different that I think will be a positive change not only for the blog, but for me as well!

I have been a runner for a long time, and yes there are definitely days when it's challenging, but more often than not, my body is just too used to doing it. My body is just getting too bored doing the same things I've been doing for the past couple of years, so I really want to start challenging it in different ways so that I can get stronger. 

I've devised a list of rules that include daily and weekly exercises that will be really tough, but really good for me to do. Here's what I have come up with.

Fitness Goals:

1. Running 5 days a week

• two days per week devoted to long runs (6 miles and over in prep for half marathon)
• one day per week devoted to HIIT run (repeats of sprinting and then recovery)
• one day per week devoted to hill workout (treadmill or bridge run)
• one day per week devoted to timed 5k run (the goal here is to improve every time!)

2. Circuit workouts 2 days a week

• I'm going to find tough ones from other blogs, or make them up myself, but I'll always post them here for you to try too!

3. 10 minutes devoted to ab work every day 

• Usually I only do about 5 or 6 minutes of abs, and certainly not every day so this will be tough. I'll post the exercises I do!

4. Thursday kick-boxing class at the gym 

• I always see this intense 60 minute class going on when I'm at the gym and it looks really cool, but I've always been too afraid to try it. Not anymore though! I plan on trying it this week and if all goes well, I'll be back every week. 

5. Arm workouts 2 times a week 

• These will most likely be designed by Joey because he knows much more about all of this then I do, but I'll share the workouts of course.

6. P90X yoga once a week

• This will be tough to fit in because it's 90 minutes and I'll have to find space to do it somewhere in the house, but a bunch of the guys I live with do P90X everyday and say the yoga is really challenging, but I really want to try it. When I'm at home, I go to hot yoga classes regularly and I miss them, so why not give this a try. 

7. Stretch every day

• I am not good about doing this. Usually by the time I'm done working out I'm just too tired and want to get home so I skip the stretching, but that's going to change. I especially need to stretch my calfs and hamstrings every day because they're the most likely to get sore or even injured due to the amount of running that I do.

8. Try to incorporate the exercises I hate doing because they're usually the ones that whip my butt into shape the most. These include:

• Pull-ups (my goal is to be able to do these unassisted by the end of the summer)
• Burpees  
• Box-jumps
• Real pushups (no girlie ones)

*more things will be added to this list, I'm sure* 

9. Workout in the morning

• It's no fun to get up early and hit the gym or go for a run, but it really makes the whole day better when you just get it out of the way early. 

10. Take 1 day of rest per week

• This is a big one for me. I hate taking days off because working out is such a good de-stresser for me, and I usually end up feeling really guilty by the end of the day that I didn't do anything physically exerting. But as hard as it may be, I'm really going to try and do this because I can only get stronger if I let my body take a break and rest up. I'm sure it will make my other workouts more productive so this is happening. 

I plan on setting up a more clear weekly schedule of workouts that includes all of these rules, so I'll be sure to post that up as soon as it's done. 

In terms of eats, I only have a couple of changes to make:

1. EAT MORE PROTEIN

• This is definitely the most important one. Because I'm a vegetarian, my protein options are somewhat limited. There are times when I go the whole day without having any protein and that's just not okay. So starting today I'm going to be sure and have a substantial portion of protein 2 out of 3 meals a day.

2. Completely lactose free 

• Not sure how long this is going to last, but I think it will be good for my stomach's sake to just cut it out for a bit

So there are my changes for the next 6 weeks (until I leave the beach house to go home), and then I'll re-evaluate the plan and maybe make a new one! 

With all of that being said, here's a look at DAY 1 of the new plan. 

Hit the gym at 9am and got right on the treadmill for a timed 5k 

22:18 is the time to beat for next week's timed 5k

After a short cool down, I was off the treadmill and starting this tough circuit:

10 push-ups alternating knee-ins
15 froggers
10 / side ice skaters
15 / leg alternating forward lunges
10 box jumps
15 / leg single leg step ups
5 / side row with neutral front raise

No rest in between exercises. Repeat the whole thing FIVE TIMES with 90 seconds rest in between each circuit.

Click here to see the video that shows how to do each of the exercises. 

Then it was time for 10 minute abs that included this circuit 

vertical leg crunches

russian oblique twists

leg raises

bicycles

V-ups 

Each exercise done for one minute. Do whole circuit twice. 

Then I had a nice stretch that felt great. 

Today's Eats: 

Breakfast- Grape-nuts with almond milk, ground flax seed, berreis, and muesli on top! Soy, unsweetened green tea latté brought as a treat from Joey. Yay!

Lunch- 1/2 whole wheat wrap with hummus, california veggie burger (bam! protein!), cranberries, and spinach, apple on the side 

Snack- Banana with Barney almond butter

Dinner- Baked salmon (2/2 protein!) with quinoa/brown rice mix, peas, and apple number 2 of the day

Packed to go because I had to babysit tonight...some items not shown. Sorry for the poor picture quality!

 So DAY 1 is all done! Catch you back here tomorrow with more updates from my new challenge!

Good Workout, Good Food, Good Deal

Today's workout: 


Early afternoon- 3.5 mile run in the blazing 100 degree heat 


Early evening- 2.5 mile treadmill run at the gym (averaging 8 minute mile pace), 12 minutes on treadmill (full incline, 10 resistance), 5 minute ab set (vertical leg crunches, bicycles, oblique twists, leg raises, forearm plank- 1 minute of each), side lateral raises holding 8 lb weights, a little resistance band work, finishing it off with a couple 1 minute wall sits.

It was a great workout, but of course I had to nom on some good food to fuel me for it!

Breakfast was back to greek yogurt + muesli, flax, and berries. Green tea too!

Dinner was baked salmon (olive oil, agave nectar, salt, pepper sprinkled on top and baked at 375 for 12-15 minutes), butternut squash, and a giant fruit salad of cantaloup, grapes, and apples (unpictured).  

Just to add some fun stuff to today's post...here are a few randomly fun and hopefully informative links to check out.

Links on links on links....

Just found this on Pinterest...helpful tips about pre/post workout things to eat: Eating Clean 

An amazing "healthy desert blog": Chocolate Covered Katie

So much interesting info about all of the foods you could think of: World's Healthiest Foods

WARNING...this WILL make you hungry: Food Porn Daily

I really want to try this workout soon!: Medicine Ball Interval Workout 

And finally I'll end by revealing what it was the guys and I did a few weeks ago (in this post) that I promised to explain later...

We filmed Coastal Vibes' first music video!!...Check it out here! There's even a guest appearance from yours truly. It's pretty funny the whole way through...and it's supposed to get weirder as it goes on, so be prepared. 

Enjoy y'all! 

Gone Fishin'

Yesterday Joey and I tackled the bridge that leads into Ocean City for our run. It wasn't a super long run (about 2.5 miles total), but that up hill was plenty hard for me. 

There she is

Such a beautiful view! 

We ended up running the bridge 2 times up and over. So in one direction we ran up and over at a fairly moderate pace, then on the way back we sprinted to the top and then slow jogged back down. Then we repeated the whole thing over again.

After the run we picked up D and went to the gym. I hit the elliptical for 20 minutes (full incline, resistance at 10), and then moved on to doing some other leg and arm work. Nothing new though, so I'll leave out the boring details.

Once back from the gym, we showered, packed overnight bags, and headed to Stone Harbor! Stone Harbor is another shore point about 45 minutes away from where we live. They have a really cute little town where there's lots of shops, restaurants, ice cream places, mini-golf, and a movie theater. So D, Channing, Joey, and I all piled in the car and headed there for the night. We ended up seeing a late showing of Spiderman (SO GOOD) before heading to Channing's grandparents' beach house to sleep over there.

This morning we woke up bright and early to go out for breakfast at the famous (around these parts) breakfast place Uncle Bill's Pancakes. I've been on an oatmeal kick lately so that's what I got (with raisins, bananas, and blueberries on top) and it was very delicious, but of course I had to try some of everyone else's pancakes since I didn't get my own. Verdict: D's pancakes were the best... cinnamon oatmeal raisin...MMMMM.

Then it was time to head back and GO FISHING! This was really the main reason we decided to take this mini trip to Stone Harbor. Channing's grandfather loves to fish and offered to take us out sometime, so we jumped on that offer and took him up on it!

D caught the first fish...a 14 inch flounder!

I caught one too!! My little guy was a smaller version of Devron's

Joey and Channing both caught a couple of small sea bass, but sorry guys...D and I definitely beat y'all in the fishing arena this afternoon. Hopefully we'll be coming back to do that again though!

Lunch before we departed for home was a baked crab cake, a clementine, and some lays chips (I forgot how addicting these bad boys are...remind me not to ever buy them for our house. If we had them, they would totes be all gone in one afternoon).

I went for a short run later this afternoon after my nap (...fishing is tiring!) , which is more than I thought I would get in today so it'll do. Tomorrow I'll just have to do a little extra. No worries!

I'm off to finish my duties as babysitter (ie-watching TV until the parents come home because the kids are asleep).

See ya tomorrow!!!

A 4th of July in Pictures

It was such a great day, and I made sure to keep the camera by my side at all times for documenting purposes....

Friends came to visit! 

A whole day spent on the beach enjoying packed snacks as well as a Synergy Kombucha...oh so refreshing.

On the beach for fireworks! 

Oooooh....Ahhhhh

Post firework performance by the guys at the local ice cream shop...enjoyed by all! 

Not pictured...coming back and crashing after one episode of Lost.

Up this morning to make pancakes for the boy and stove top oats (with brown sugar and almond milk) for moi! 

I hope your holiday was just as relaxing and enjoyable as mine! I'll leave you with the workout I knocked out yesterday morning:


Cardio- 
23 and a half minute 5k on treadmill (ehh...not my best, but I'll take it!)
4 minutes a little slower, but still averaging about 7.6 mph
2.5 minute uphill speed walk for cool down


Strength-
15 chest press at 50 lb
10 assisted pull-ups
15 seated leg press at 90 lb
^repeat cycle four times through^


1 minute lunges per leg, holding 10 lb dumbbells
2x10 bicep curls per arm with 12 lb dumbbells
1 minute chair hold


Abs- 
5 minute abs
2 x 1 minute plank holds

Take me out to the ball game ♫

What screams America more than a baseball game?

Well lucky for us, that's what we went to Philly for! Coastal Vibes got asked to sing the National Anthem at the Reading Phillies game, so we drove up the night before the game and spent the night there.

Morning of the game was spent getting a quick bite to eat (Chob greek yogurt that I packed, a sliced nanner, and Special K sprinkled on top), and then going to the gym to get our workout in for the day.

Cardio:
4 miles doing my normal 1 minute medium speed, 1 minute faster speed, 1 minute speed circuit
1 mile doing the incline circuit that I explained in this post 
.25 miles cool down

Then it was time for abs on this baby:

Leg ups and Sit ups...feel the burn! 

My hamstrings are STILL sore from the other days Romanian dead lifts so I did lots of stretching on this guy.  

Then we came home, showered, and went to the game!

It was such a fun night- the guys sounded great, the crowd loved them, and I even found a healthy option for dinner!

There was a "healthy food" stand at the game so I got a veggie+tuna salad wrap and a fruit cup on the side. As you can see, this thing is HUGE so I only managed to have about half of it (Joey had the other half later that night for his "4th meal"). Of course I also had to have just a few  a handfull or two of ballpark peanuts while there.

This morning we got up, had breakfast, and made a run to Fresh Market before heading back to the shore.

I forgot to take a pic of my buys at that amazing grocery store, but here is what I can remember:

• Jar of Barney Almond Butter + a few individual packets of it for on the go needs 
• Grapes, Strawberries, Rasberries
• 3 Organic Fuji Apples
• Air popped popcorn ( I can't resist it, hopefully it doesn't cause another stomach ache   )
• Hummus
• Crumbled goat cheese
• Frozen berries for smoothies! 
• Large container of V8 low sodium sweet potato soup 
• Box of Steel Cut quick oats by McCann's 
• Box of rosemary and olive oil quinoa blend

Successful trip!

After we made the quick trip home, I warmed up some V8 sweet potato soup, cut up an apple, and cozied in to catch up on the Bachelorette episode I missed last night. I am ashamed to say that I am addicted to it this season, but how can I not be when Emily is from my hometown!! For anyone who watches the show, many Charlotte sources who know Emily say that she picks "the guy you wouldn't expect"...PLEASE BE JEF!!!

I didn't realize how tired I was, but after the show I fell asleep and was out cold for a solid hour.

Finally I willed myself out of bed to go on a quick run. I was going to take a day off, but then I decided to bake some things tonight, and so I figured I would feel less guilty indulging if I had at least done something physically active. I also had a banana + almond butter for pre-run fuel.

So out I went for a 40 minute run that ended at the local grocery store where I bought baking supplies, stopped at Starbucks for an iced soy, unsweetened, green tea latté (duhh...), and then walked home to start the bakin' before the guys got home from their gig in Ocean City.

I munched on some grapes while baking this guy....

Angel Food cake with fat-free cool whip and berries on top

So festive in honor of the holiday coming up tomorrow! 

Angel food cake is a tricky thing to make...especially with all of the egg-whites, but it's well worth it!
I used this recipe.

I also made these...

Here's the recipe 

Unfortunately mine turned out NOTHING like the picture even though I followed the directions perfectly! Hmmm who knows what went wrong, but they were still deliciously and dangerously addicting...luckily I live with 8 guys who will surely eat them faster than I could.

I got so busy baking (and tasting my sweet creations), that I forgot to have a legitimate dinner. So now I'm munching on more grapes and am about to have a few homemade sweet potato fries that Devron is whipping up...mmm.

Have an amazing Fourth of July!!! 

...and then another packed dinner...

Yesterday was a day full of nothing too special. I slept in (again...oopsie) and then promptly woke up to a grumbling stomach....breakfast time!! #bestmealoftheday.

Nothing special about it though but it basically looked identical to this...

Chob with flax, dorset muesli, flax seed, and berries. 

Perfectly satisfying.

I spent most of the day doing random things around the house like baking a gluten free chocolate chip cake/bread thing...delicious!

Baked from a mix 

Lunch was amazing...

NOT MY LUNCH. Joey was grilling chicken in bulk yesterday so I asked him to grill me one of my salmon burgers while he was at it...

Grilled salmon burger with lemon pepper seasoning  and goat cheese atop a bed of spinach with dried cranberries. Peaches on the side 

After letting my lunch digest (while watching Lost...guilty), I mustered up all of my energy to go workout. My body was feeling extremely sore and tired, so I almost took a day off...but instead I somehow made it outside at 4 for a boardwalk run (+ some pushups, abs, and lunges thrown in there). 50 minutes later, I was back in the house scrambling to get ready to go babysit.

Shower, done.
Packed dinner, done.
Folding laundry, done.
Packing for our overnight trip to Phili (more on that later), done.
Out the door in one hour...CHAMP.

My packed dinner consisted of a sliced peach (I'm addicted), an apple, 1 slice of Ezekiel toast with almond butter, Blood Orange Chobani greek yogurt,and some Kashi crackers with a little soy cheese. Perf! 

Now I'm off to head to the gym after enjoying a nice breakfast in Phili...why am I here?? I'll get to that tomorrow! Have a good day!

A Weekend of Packed Dinners, Sweaty Workouts, and FROYO

My weekend summed up in a few words and a few pictures:

Friday was spent in Sea Isle at their beach having a nice relaxing afternoon with friends. Workout was a 30 minute run in the morning, and another 30 minute run that evening. The weather was extremely brutal for running so all I could manage after the running was some walking lunges and lots of stretching.

Friday night I had babysitting so I packed my dinner to take along with me: leftover faux chicken grillers and corn, apple and peach, carrots/celery with hummus, and a clementine later that night. Unfortunately my camera wasn't on hand for any of my eats this day, but you get the idea.

Saturday I slept in longer than usual because I didn't sleep much that night. Severe thunderstorms with tons of lightning, loud thunder, and howling wind = Jordan wide awake. Plus later in the night I ended up getting a bad stomach ache and I have no clue why....very strange.

Saturday breakfast was same old thing. Some vanilla Chob with berries and a little kashi/grape-nut mixture poured over. I added some ground flax seed into the mix as well.

Lunch Saturday- spinach salad with strawberries, goat cheese, cranberries, and a grilled salmon burger (first time trying these....I am a HUGE fan now). A piece of Ezekiel bread with hummus and more spinach on top. Apple and almond butter too!! 

Saturday's workout was a doozy. Joey and I ran to the gym (a surprisingly miserable 2.10 miles), then I went on the elliptical for 25 minutes and that baby was at full incline and a tough resistance the whole time. I figured if I wasn't going to get on the treadmill (I had had enough running), then I better kick my own butt another way. Then I did a set of alternating bosu ball pushups, and bicep curls with a 20 lb bar. Next was 15 reps on the chest press machine 4 times through. I finally finished, exhausted, with some partner ab work with Joey.

My tired pitiful self was ready for our ride to come pick us up from the gym, and then Joey told me we were just going to have to run back....wah wah wah.

So we slow jogged back to the house (and when I say jogged...I really mean the majority of that 2.1 miles was covered by walking).

Dinner was packed to go (again) because some of the guys and I were going to go see a movie so I brought dinner in the car. It was some V8 butternut squash soup, kashi crackers with a little soy cheddar cheese, Light and Fit Yogurt, and a cut up apple and peach.

Unfortunately the movie theatre was out of power (like the rest of the Jersey shore minus our house somehow), so we had to come home :(

But not before stopping for the best dessert in the whole wide world....

Andrew's first froyo experience !! 

FROYO!!!! 


I usually go for the tart fruity flavors and toppings when it comes to froyo so in my cup went some peach mango, banana, and orange cream. And toppings included raspberries, blueberries, graham cracker, and dark chocolate dried pomegranate...MMMM!! I was a happy camper for sure. My only regret was that I should have tried some of the peanut butter. NEXT TIME...and believe me...there will be a next time...

Now I'm up and at em' making breakfast and possibly going to bake something in a bit. It's also laundry day (blah), so I'll have to get to that eventually.

Have a great Sunday!!