New Shoes...Again!

I got a very exciting package in the mail yesterday. My new lifting/corss training shoes!

I got a groupon a few weeks ago for $50 worth of Reebok gear for $25.  I 've been wanting to get some new shoes for lifting since I've been just using my old running shoes the last couple of months.  This was the perfect opportunity. I chose the Reebok YourFlex Trainette. 

Why different shoes for running and for lifting you ask??

Wrong Shoes: Running Shoes. The air & gel filling is great for reducing impact shock from running. But bad for lifting. Running shoes will limit your strength & prevent good lifting technique.

• Unstable. Soles are squishy so you can't predict their behavior on each rep. This makes it harder to control your technique and lift properly.
• Power Loss. The soles absorb the force generated against the floor instead of directing it towards moving the weight. You lose strength.
• Dangerous. Higher risk of injury, especially with heavier weights, since the soles make it hard to balance yourself and are less stable.

Benefits of Good Lifting Shoes. Good lifting shoes have incompressible soles. They must be non slippery, have excellent support and fit snug. Benefits:

• More Stability. Better traction against the floor and improved balance under the bar because the soles are hard.
• More Strength. Your heels will sense the pressure of the weight better, which will make your legs contract harder.
• Better Technique. Good lifting shoes will fix many technique issues. You'll sit back better, your heels will stop coming off the floor, ...
• More Safety. Better balance, better technique, ... All of it decreases the risks of injury during lifting.

These shoes are totally different than my running shoes. They are much more light weight, the sole of the shoe is a lot smaller, and it's a much more minimalist shoe.  I almost feel like I'm walking in my bare feet.  But I think this will help me feel more stable when I'm weight lifting especially during lunges and squats.

Matt and I headed to Main St. tonight for him to buy new running shoes! The only shoes he has been using since we started running are department store running shoes.  Not the best choice when training for anything.  Matt noticed he was having some issues and weird pains when he was running higher mileage so he decided it was time to splurge!

I love having such a great running store right down the road for us.  Matt was very close to buying some Brooks shoes just like me, but in the end decided to get Nike's. I totally thought we were going to be matchy there for a second....guess not. We also stopped at one of the University of Delaware's apparel stores to look around and I ended up buying this cute little outfit for our friend who is pregnant.

So cute!

After shopping we went to California Tortilla for dinner.  I took a picture, but my phone is a tard and must not have actually taken it.  Mrrrr. Well I got a borrito bowl with rice, roasted veggies, chicken, salsa and guacamole. It was delicious, but I didn't finish it because I was saving room for dessert! Friday is cheat day after all!!

We went to a frozen yogurt place down the strret.  I had half peanut butter and half chocolate froyho topped with strawberries and dark chocolate chips. Holy cow did this hit the spot considering it was 100 degrees here today.  I love froyo places. I just like how I can make my own cup up instead of someone behind the counter doing it.  They also had a sign behind the counter with the nutrition information for thist stuff. Only 100 calories for 1/2 cup. That's pretty good!

We are just sitting down watching some of the track and field and swimming olympic trials and paging through the neweset issue of runner's world!  I'll be in bed early tonight so I can wake up early for my 4 mile run before it hits 97 later in the day. 





Shmoops I'm A Bad Blogger

Hello everyone! It's been a busy week here for me so I've kind of fallen off the blogging wagon. But, I'm back. So what's been going on with me you ask?? Oh pretty much the same as usual.  Sleep, eat, work, workout, eat, sleep.  Exciting stuff I know. 

Workouts:

I've been continuing my first week of my half marathon training schedule by completing 3 miles on Tuesday outside at a 9.24 pace.  It felt a lot better than my run on Monday.  On Wednesday we had volleyball, so no running there!  Today I went to the gym and completed this strength workout before hopping on the treadmill:

Complete 3 Rounds:

12 Deadlift to Bent Over Row (15lb dumbbells)

10 Rep Benchpress (15lb dumbbells)

10 Reps Each Arm Single Arm Dumbbell Squat Swing (15lb dumbbell)

8 reps alternating front and side arm raises (8lb dumbbells)

20 Air Squats

Treadmill:

Alternating 2 minutes "jog" and 1 minute "sprint" for 2.5 miles, then run 0.5 miles at 9.30 min mile.

I'm planning my long run (not really) this week for Saturday morning. I'm going to have to get up at the crack of dawn and rock my water belt before it hits 95 degrees that day.

Food:

Here is my What I Ate Wednesday post a day late! I took all the pictures yesterday, but didn't get home until after 8:30 last night and was pooped.

Breakfast:

Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats Goodness.  I live for breakfast every morning.

Snack:

Cherries!! and...

I got a box of mini KIND bars in assorted flavors, but I think I still like the almond cashew the best.

Lunch:

Tuna salad made with veggies and hummus and an apple. I also had a bite of a luna protein bar.

Before Volleyball:

unpictured banana and..

Dinner:

 I met my friend at Iron Hill Brewery for dinner and ordered the grilled chicken breast with red quinoa.

This was really good. The sauce they used was nice and tart from the granny smith apples. When I finally got home I sat down with Matt to watch the rest of the swimming olympic trials and munch on some dark chocolate.

I'm so excited that there is only one day left in the week. We have a pretty open weekend, which never happens! I think we are going to enjoy it!



Not Off To A Great Start

Today I woke up and was so happy that I wasn't horribly sore from yesterday's workout! I was ready to run, ready to start my half marathon training!  I thought it would be the perfect day for a run.  80 degrees with some clouds in the sky.  Well I started running and knew right away it wasn't going to be a great run.  Good thing I only had 3 miles on the schedule for today.  I tried to stay around a 9:30 pace, but I really felt like the sun was getting to me. 

Well, I finished with a 9.24 average pace, but I felt like poop haha.  The bad runs make you appreciate the good runs. That's what I tell myself.  When I got home from my run I went down in the basement and did some ab work to finish my workout for the day. I have another 3 on my schedule for tomorrow, and then I'll be running errands in my sweaty running clothes.

Dinner tonight was a super simple crockpot meal:

Chili based on a recipe I found on pinterest:

2 chicken breasts

1 can of black beans, drained

1 can of cannelini beans, drained

1 can of diced tomatoes

16oz can of tomato sauce

1 package taco seasoning

1 onion chopped

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp cumin

few handfuls of frozen corn

Cook on low all day and enjoy!

Matt also had a big hand in dinner tonight. The salad greens we ate on the side came from his veggie garden. Look at that spinach baby:

Don't mind me covering my boobs, I don't wear bras when I get home from work.

For dessert I had a carrot cake muffin that I baked yesterday:

I found this recipe on fannetastic food.  I had all of the ingredients on hand which always makes my life a whole lot easier.

Dry:

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup craisins

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

Wet

1 & 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce

1 cup shredded carrot

Mix wet and dry, bake at 350 for 25 minutes. YUM!! I think they taste great, Matt thinks they are a little too "healthy tasting" so he wants to add cream cheese icing haha.  Oh Matt.



Last "Free" Weekend

I'm so sad the weekend is over! I really took a breather and enjoyed myself before I start my half marathon training. Matt and I went to the beach on Saturday with our friend Chelsea and had the best day just laying around, going in the water and playing games on the boardwalk.  I even got a little tan (please hold back your shock and awe).  Tomorrow I'll be starting my half marathon training plan for the next 12 weeks...hikes. That seems like a really long time to me.  Here is my training plan as it stands now.

I definitely will not stick to this 100%.  Certain weekends that we are away on vacation I will try to do my long run in the middle of the week instead.  I'm looking forward to the work this week because it's just short distances!

But before I start that, this morning I headed to the gym for a strength and crosstraining workout.

I took this with me to the gym because my memory sucks.  The numbers are the weights that I used.  I went through this workout 3 times adding 10 burpees to the end of each round.  Then I hopped on the elliptical for 20 minutes and finished with 10 minutes of ab work.  When I got home I had a big cup of coffee with a scoop of vanilla protein powder in it.  It's actually not half bad.  The protein powder kind of acts like a creamer. I cooked up my usual weekend lunch of an omlet...except that I burnt the crap out of it.

Still ate it though.

After lunch Matt and I went out to run errands.  We went ot Bed Bath and Beyond to pick up some of the things left on our registry.  Going into this, I didn't think it would take too long.  Boy was I wrong.  For being a store that primarily deals with wedding registries, it seemed like nobody had any idea what they were doing.  Matt and I walked  out so ready to be done.  We both have a very short span of time that we can shop consecutively.  I am not one of those people who can shop for hours on end.  Aft BB&B I ran to Old Navy because I had a $20 coupon.  I got a few pairs of shorts (adding to my current shorts collection of....2) and a dress for our friends wedding in August.  Then headed home to start dinner.

On the menu...PIZZA.

sooooo goood. I used the recipe for my whole wheat pizza crust,  topped Matt's side with sauce, cheese and pepparoni, my side with pesto, cheese, spinach and cherry tomatoes. YUM.  I'm having the rest of mine for lunch tomorrow!

Hope everyone had a good weekend! Time to go get my stuff together for the week.