Squat & Diet

Posted by hellyontherun in Healthy Eating, Marathon Training, Running and tagged with Diet, Healthy Eating, Marathon Training, Pre-habbing, Squats, Strength Training May 24, 2017

Yep that’s pretty much what’s been going on over here….

I’ve been running, but what I’ve really been doing is squatting like I’ve never squatted before and trying to eat better. I have no idea who I’ve become.

So my coach right now is really focusing on pre-habbing (you know, doing the stuff people do when they get injured but BEFORE they get injured). Every Tuesday and Thursday I’m supposed to cross-train/strength train and like a good student, I’ve been doing all of my assignments. There’s more that I do besides squatting, but there’s def more of those than anything else. My Moms Run This Town chapter also has a month long squat challenge so everything has coincided quite nicely (or not? lol!).

Nothing has humbled me more than single-legged squats. Holy shit, those are hard.

source

I’ve become one with squats. After almost a month of squatting, I no longer dread them but accept them as part of my daily routine. While I have two scheduled days of strength training, I’ve found myself squatting and doing core work every single day. And after almost 4 weeks, I can finally begin to feel the hard work paying off.

It took me longer to get as motivated for the diet part, though. No surprise. But, last week was my first full week of being mindful of what I was putting in my mouth. My coach gave me a list of food ideas–this I love because I’m totally a person who likes being told what to do, in this case, eat.

Tuna has become my best friend. I’ve made this quite a few times. I’ve also been making a lot of smoothies which pairs great with our 105 degree temperatures 😀

1 cup almond milk
1 banana
mixed berries (to your liking)
spinach (or kale–I switch b/w them)

and voila! A yummy smoothie! Sometimes I’ll throw in chia seeds or Greek yogurt for funsies but with or without, it’s yummy.

I’ve been easing myself back into running. My coach has given me a break from speed work and tempos to concentrate on getting everything healed (foot feels amazing!). I finally feel like I’m getting back to normal with everything. I definitely felt my mojo drop a little and now that summer is arriving (my happy season), I’m ready to get to work.

100+ degrees? No sweat!

–Do you like squats? (They were seriously my death but now I don’t hate them as much anymore) Am I the only one who dances around trying to hold a single legged squat?

–What’s in your favorite smoothie?

–Your thoughts/feelings on summer approaching?

Getting Poked

Posted by hellyontherun in Running and tagged with Dry Needling, Recovery, Running May 12, 2017

I mentioned in my previous post that I’d been having an achy right foot…nothing major, but I could feel it. I had a friend who last year ruptured her plantar and the image of her foot is forever ingrained in my memory; so, when I started to feel this little niggle, I decided to take care of it right away.

At my coach’s suggestion, I visited a sports doctor on Monday who said that it was good I was catching this early. Then he said, “I can tell you what I want to do, and I can tell you what your other options are.”

Uh, oh.

I told him to give it to me straight.

Dry needling.

WHAT?!?

I’ve heard about it from other runner friends but I didn’t really know what it was. Basically, they poke you with a needle and then push the needle as far as they can until you say STOP.

He said that I could turn on my stomach so I didn’t see, but I told him that I did want to see. And I also wanted to see the needle. He showed it to me and even let me hold it. I became one with the needle.

I had 3 needles poked in the arch of my right foot. Each time he pushed it in deep until I couldn’t anymore. Then, once in, he would twist the needle.

He asked if I was okay with him inserting one on my shin. I figured, might as well…

What I thought when he poked me in the shin

Let me just say, that I’m actually very good with needles. I was thankful for this random gift as I have no idea how those NOT good with needles would handle this procedure.

He taped me up and said that I should feel better the next day. The next day?!? But it was true. I felt relief the very next morning. I was advised to rest though and not run for 4-5 days. I could cross train, which I did on Tuesday and Wednesday and on Friday, I went for my first run.

I’d have to say, I’m a believer in this dry needling business. It hurt, but it was effective and really, that’s all that matters to me. I’ll take the pain to make the pain go away.

–Have you ever done dry needling?

–Are you good with needles?

Update: A Trophy, Missing the Century Mark, and a Humbling Half

Posted by hellyontherun in Award, Half Marathon, Running and tagged with Recap, She Power Half May 8, 2017

As you may or may not have noticed, I took a blogging break/mini social media break. It was a rough month’s end (April) and I needed some recoup time. I’m feeling a lot better, but I do want to catch you all up to speed.

A Trophy

In early April I snagged my new 5k Pr (and broke 22 minutes!). I ended up placing 2nd in my Age group which was a complete surprise to me, especially since it was 30-39, a wider spread than the usual 30-34. I received an e-mail that I would be awarded at an Arizona Diamondbacks! Free tickets in addition to the award!

My husband and I decided to make it a date night and it was just so much fun!

Cheesin’ real hard 😀

The trophy was really fancy and I got to go down to the field and everything! (And even make a jumbotron appearance 😀 )

Missing the Century Mark

I finished April with 99.64 miles. I did not care about being .36 off 100.

A Humbling Half

The last day of April had me running a much anticipated half marathon. The She Power Half is an inaugural race that happened to take place in my city. I was really looking forward to this race since I first signed up for it last year. I thought maybe it could be a PR race. But after Phoenix Marathon, I didn’t feel as up for it as I had hoped. I also felt tired, which isn’t a surprise considering the year I’ve had. When I talked to my coach about She Power, she agreed that it wasn’t an ideal race for me to attempt a half PR and instead, gave me a race plan that was still challenging enough to make it fun for me (because I like making my life difficult).

But from the get-go I knew my coach’s plan wasn’t happening. The first mile was fine, a little fast. My husband and kids surprised me right before the mile mark and it was my best mile of the race.

My favorite cheerleaders ❤

It was all downhill from there (and not in the good race downhill way). My BQ training buddy Ashley was with me and I told her at mile 4 that things were not looking good for me and to go on on her own. The rest of the way had me trying in vain to keep her in my sight.

At mile 10, the cramps came as well as defeat. I knew my family would be at our neighborhood entrance after the mile marker and when I saw them, I came to a complete stop. I was done. I chatted with my husband for a bit and thought about waiting a little longer for some friends before I decided to just finish the race. It was about a 4-5 minute stop.

Exactly what I needed at that moment ❤

I saw a girl around the last mile of the race who looked like she was on a mission. I asked her what her goal was and she said 1:55. I told her that we had it and to “Let’s go!”

After the race I felt like I’d been hit by a train. My entire body was so sore and I knew that I was battling some dehydration. I hung out with friends for a while afterward (which really made this race into a WIN) and when I went home, I immediately went to bed.

The race did not go at all according to plan and instead, it left me in more pain than my last two marathons combined. There’s an ache specifically in my right foot that I’m getting checked out this afternoon. With official BQ training approaching, I want to make sure I can start on the right foot (see what I did there?).

Even though She Power wasn’t a race to remember time-wise, I can’t help but think how far I’ve come in my running when a 1:55 isn’t a “good” race. I remember training for that time. Now looking back, I’m glad the race went the way it did, because it has really helped me reflect on my journey and appreciate every race for what it is. Of course I know that not every race can be a PR, this one wasn’t even meant to be, but sometimes you need a reminder that there are waaaay more things that make a race “good”. My friends are what made this race and it’s those memories that I’ll look back on the most.