Inspiration

Howdy folks! I hope you're having a great week so far!

I can't complain and even if I did,  it wouldn't do me any good.

My legs  are still very sore from my long run last Saturday. I did 7  miles,  up to the  top of  Bullet  Mountain  and back so that I could work on my downhill running technique.  It is 1100 ft elevation,  pretty much straight up! It was hard and wasn't a pretty run by any means.  I didn't feel well afterward.  I was nauseated and had chills and severe leg cramps .  My hubs thinks that I overheated and got dehydrated.  I think he might be right,  but shhhh......don't tell him I said that!

I didn't run yesterday morning.  I gave the legs another day of rest.  I did  Body Beast build  chest and triceps instead.  Today is leg day!  I might go have make  some modifications  because of the residual soreness. The forecasted high temp for tomorrow is supposed to  be in the 70's,  so I'm hoping to get in a few recovery miles then.

I've had a couple of insightful conversations recently that I wanted to talk to you about.  Last Wednesday,  after my personal trainer session,  I posted a flex selfie.  A good  friend sent me a message to tell that I was looking good,  happy and healthy.  He went on to say the he was "a work in progress" and thanked me for the inspiration. I replied with my usual "not where I want to be  but  closer than I used to be"  line and didn't give it much thought.  Then yesterday, I was scrolling through Instagram and ran across a new account that really struck me.  I followed it and commented on  her photo that she was inspirational. To which she replied "aren't we all"  That comment really resonated with me and I completely got what my friend was trying to tell me last week.  The definition  of inspiration is: a person or thing that motivates mentally or emotionally. It was in that moment that I realized no matter where I am in my journey,  there is someone out there who is just starting.  Who knows who you might  be influencing today,  so do your best to put your best self out there! Everyday you  should strive to  be a little bit better than you were yesterday! #relentlesspursuitofbetter #rpob

Until next time--get up,  get out and get moving.  Whatever you do today,  be awesome at it!

Your friend,

Theresa


Who or what inspires you?
How do you try to improve yourself everyday?

BIG NEWS!!

Hello, hello!! 

Happy pre-Friday y'all!  We're on the down hill side now!!  I don't know about you, but I'm ecstatic about it because we all know I'm just working for the weekend!

I told you yesterday that I had some awesome news for you. Well, drum roll please........

I'm pleased to announce that I have been selected as a "run-bassador" for Run Revel race series. I was contacted by them a while back about becoming an ambassador. I was delighted when they contacted me because I had been looking for a fall race and ran across the Big Cottonwood half marathon in Salt Lake City, Utah in September. I was considering this as my fall race as it is one week before my birthday. I thought it would be a great birthday present to myself!! So, naturally, I was thrilled when they contacted me to notify me that I had been selected as an ambassador.

 

REVEL is a series of running events that is gaining a broad presence in the running world by distinguishing its races in a number of ways, including its unique courses, emphasis on runner experience, and partnerships with local communities, nonprofit organizations, sponsors, and government agencies.

 

REVEL races can best be described by two words: Fast & Beautiful. Our events take place in the most beautiful venues available in the areas in which they are held. REVEL races seek to maximize the time our runners spend running in canyons, forests, state or national parks, and so forth. In addition, the downhill nature of REVEL races provides a unique opportunity for runners to achieve personal best times and qualify for exclusive events.

In addition to providing unforgettable experiences for our runners, REVEL races also deliver value to the communities who graciously host our events. Each REVEL race brings significant financial benefits to local economies, provides an opportunity for communities to brand themselves, and creates a healthier and more fitness-friendly community. Additionally, proceeds from each REVEL runner's entry fee are donated to local nonprofit groups geared towards health and environmental causes.

Currently, they have marathons and half marathons in  Denver, CO; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Los Angeles, CA. I'll be running the Big Cottonwood Half Marathon in Salt Lake City on September 13, one week before my birthday.

The Hoka One One REVEL Big Cottonwood Half Marathon may be the fastest and most beautiful half marathon course you will ever run. Experience the amazing views in the canyon with the sun coming up and the fall leaves glowing brightly. The half marathon begins at Spruces Campground in Big Cottonwood Canyon and runs straight downhill among the canyon cliffs and alongside Big Cottonwood Creek for nearly 10 miles to the mouth of the canyon.  After exiting the canyon the course is straight, downhill, and fast, without a single turn on the entire course and a continual slope down to the finish. At the mouth of the canyon runners will continue straight onto Fort Union Boulevard and continue due west to the finish line in front of the Cottonwood Heights city offices.

The marathon begins at Brighton Ski Resort at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon and runs straight downhill among the canyon cliffs and alongside Big Cottonwood Creek for nearly 15 miles to the mouth of the canyon. Runners enjoy an average 5% grade during this stretch. Make sure you train appropriately for this downhill section as downhill running works your muscles differently than flat or uphill.  After exiting the canyon the marathon course heads north for an out-and-back on Wasatch Boulevard. With the road completely closed to all traffic and reserved solely for the marathon, runners will be able to witness incredible views of the Salt Lake Valley and cheer on their fellow runners as they pass going the opposite way. This 7 mile stretch of the marathon is relatively flat with slight rolling hills.  After the out-and-back the marathon course returns to the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon and enters the city of Cottonwood Heights, following the same downhill course as the half marathon to finish in front of the Cottonwood Heights city offices. The marathon course is USATF certified and is one of the fastest Boston Marathon qualifying races in the country. 
 
In the upcoming days, I will create a team that you'll all be invited to join. Once my team is created, I will be given a discount code to share with you so that you can join me. All teams will receive a professional team photo at the finish, and team scoring. Teams of 12 or more receive additional benefits, including the option to create official Hoka One One REVEL Big Cottonwood team shirts with their team name and a custom color, as well as team tent space at the finish. I'll have more information about it in the upcoming days. Keep watching the blog or follow me on Twitter @RNrunnerdiva or on Instagram @tunruh67 for more details and information.

I'm incredibly excited to be working with and representing Run Revel! And I would be thrilled to have you all join me in Utah in September! It would be a wonderful birthday gift to have you all run with me!! Or y

Until next time--get up, get out, and get moving!!  Whatever you do today, be awesome at it!!

Your friend,

Theresa

    

Workout Wednesday

Hey y'all!  I hope you're having a great week so far!

We're already halfway through yet another work week.  I find that hard to believe.  But it has  been a busy one,  so far!

I meal prepped like a boss this past weekend.  We didn't go to the lake so I was able to take a little extra time prepping.  I fixed grilled chicken, turkey burgers, boiled eggs, ground turkey,  brown rice,  black beans,  sweet potatoes,  broccoli,  mixed veggies,  and fresh fruit. We tried something new for breakfast this week: chicken apple sausages.  They were delicious! So we're both fairly well on track with our nutrition this week.

I'm pleased to announce that hubs is doing the  Body Beast  workouts with me on a daily basis. We had a few misses the first week,  but we've been very consistent this week.  We're going on vacation in a couple of weeks,  so I'm not sure how we will manage that  but we'll figure out something. This morning,  I worked out at the gym it my trainer.  It was a good session.  It was obvious to me that I need to keep working to strengthen my core! I'm still weak in that area.

I'm still tracking fats,  carbs,  and protein in My Fitness Pal using the calculations from If It Fits Your Macros I'm getting a better understanding of the process. I still am not seeing the progress that I want to see.  I'm just going to keep with it though.  I really like the concept of not tracking calories.  I record all my daily food.  And,  if I still have room for a treat,  then I have the treat and don't feel guilty about it.  I haven't been on the scale in a couple of weeks.  I'm not hungry at all. It is isn't  restrictive at all.  I think that it  instills  a healthier  mindset than counting calories and watching the scale. Both of those methods can lead to eating disorders and body image issues.

Today is  Wednesday,  so that means it's Workout Wednesday.  I've got a quick,  total body circuit for you today.  You can either incorporate this into your usual routine or it can stand alone if you're pressed for time.

So,  that's all for now.  I'll have some super exciting news for you tomorrow  so stay tuned!

Until next time--get up, get out,  and  get moving! Whatever you do today,  be awesome at it!

Your friend,

Theresa

#300

Howdy  y'all!  Happy Friday!

I am super excited today!  Not only is it Friday, my absolute favorite day of the week and I was lucky enough to get a good parking place today.  But,  this is my  300th post! Woo-hoo!  And I know you're all as excited about it as I am.  I sound have planned something exciting, like a give away,  but I wasn't clever enough to think about it/plan it in time.  So,  we'll have to do it later.

It's been business as usual for me this week.  We had some beautiful, unseasonably cool weather this week.  I was hoping to get some running in this week,  but I've been seriously lacking in the  motivation and energy department this week. I don't know why I've felt so run down and tired but I've tried to listen to my body and take it easy.  So,  other than the  Body  Beast  workouts,  I haven't done much this week. So far,  the  Body Beast  Build  Back and  Biceps is my  favorite workout. Tonight is Build Shoulders.  We have 2 more weeks of the build phase then we move to bulking.  Hubs is really starting to enjoy the workouts too.

I feel like I'm getting a better handle on the  iifym plan but I'm still not 100% yet.  I feel like I'm eating A LOT of  food. So much,  that I feel like I'm having trouble getting it all in.  And I've bumped my calories up which is hard for me to process. For so long now,  I've counted calories and watched my portion sizes that is hard for me to embrace this plan.  I haven't seen any real results yet but I'm trying to trust the process.

This is going to be a low key weekend at home for us.  We're not going to the lake.  We're going to get pedicures tonight.  I'm going to run with friends in the morning then I'm going to do some shopping.  His is planning to spend some time with his dad. Of course we have our usual chores and weekly food prep,  but I would like to try to go to a movie or something fun like that.

That's all for now! Have a great weekend!

Until next time--get up, get out, and get moving! Whatever you do today, be awesome at it!

Your friend,

Theresa

A Few Things

Oh,  hey there!

It's already Tuesday (aka the worst day of the week)  Wow, time sure flies even if we're not having fun!  I hope you're having a great week so far.

I'm trying hard to get to work early these days due to the ridiculous parking situation.  That means no blogging  before work.  Ideally,  I hope to post after I get here but that doesn't always work out depending on the work load so posts have been a little sporadic. This week is no exception to that.

We had another great weekend at the lake. The weather was hot and dry which meant a lot of floating time. We got home a little later than usual on Sunday evening,  but I had enough time to get the weekly meal prep done.

This week I prepped grilled chicken,  turkey burgers,  ground turkey,  quinoa,  broccoli,  mixed vegetables,  salad  and strawberries for the week.

Our garden has blessed us with an abundance of tomatoes and peppers.  I'm going to try to make some blender salsa after work tonight.  I'll keep you posted on how that turns out.

We are technically on week 2 of Body Beast, but hubs missed a few of the workouts last week so we're going to start over.  I'm going to do  a Body Beast /21 Fix Hybrid because I feel like I need more cardio. Here's what our workout schedule looks like for this week:

Monday: Body Beast chest and triceps
Tuesday: Body Beast legs/21 Day Fix total body cardio
Wednesday: Upper Fix/ Body Beast back and biceps
Thursday: Cardio Fix
Friday: Body Beast shoulders/Pirates Fix
Saturday: Dirty 30

We are experiencing unseasonably cool temps this week so I'm hoping to include a couple  of runs in there too.

That's all I've got for you now.  Until next time--get up,  get out and get moving! Be awesome today.

Your friend,

Theresa

My week in a Nutshell

Hey  y'all!  Did you think I had forgotten about you?

Nuts pretty much sums up my week.  It's been way busy but productive.  The best part is,  today is Friday!  And you know it's going to be a great day when you get a good parking spot! The parking situation at my work is ridiculous beyond belief.  I've  been trying to arrive early this week so that I could get a good spot.  Yesterday,  I had to park on the top of the parking garage in a thunder storm. Needless to say,  I was soaked despite my umbrella. Today,  I got lucky!

I've be fairly consistent  about clean eating this week.  And I've been 100% compliant with my cross training. Monday,  I ran with friends before work.  I had a gait analysis that afternoon. A lot of the issues I was already aware of were confirmed  but I also found out that I over-supinate when I push off and over-pronate when I land.  1 foot is a fore front  striker  and the other is mid foot.  I have what they call a "shuffling gait"  I have no idea how to fix it but they gave me exercises to do,  of course.  That evening,  I did a chest and triceps workout.

Tuesday,  my Team Beach body Body Beast program arrived.  The first day of that is chest and triceps.  Since I had done that the previous night,  I skipped to  day 2: Build Legs.  Let's just say that I'm almost able to walk normally  today  ☺ Wednesday was  back and biceps, probably my favorite so far.  Yesterday  was Beast Caudio.  I really  didn't like it and will be subbing the 21 Day Fix Cardin oran Insanity workout in the  future.  Today was Build Shoulders.  It was a great routine,  but I was really tired this morning,  so didn't lift as heavy as I should  have.  I'm really eager to continue this routine and see where it goes!

I'm still tracking my macros but still not 100% sure I'm doing it correctly.  I need a little more time to play around with it.  I'll keep you posted on that.

Hubs and I are going to the lake after work tonight,  so I'm looking forward to that  R&R!

That's all I've got for you now.

Until next time--get up,  get out,  and get moving!  Whatever you do today,  be awesome at it!

Your  friend,

Theresa

Motivation Monday

Howdy,  Howdy y'all!

I hope you all had a great 4th of July weekend.

We were at the lake for an extended weekend. After my mother in law passed,  we decided to take my father in law with us.  We knew it would be challenging but we didn't feel like leaving him home alone for 5 days was the right thing to do. It was a fun but exhausting weekend and I think a good time was had by all.  I know he enjoyed himself. He tried very hard to keep up with us all weekend and did a fairly good job of it actually.  Other than one potential heat exhaustion episode,  there were no major mishaps.

I ran Wednesday and Friday.  I walked on Thursday and Saturday. I was fairly good food and beverage - wise until yesterday when I ate some Fritos. I ate WAY more than the recommend serving size...oops!

So,  the past few weeks have been very hectic for me. I've tried hard to maintain consistent workouts and clean eating despite all that we've had going on.  I'm happy to be able to get back into a more consistent routine today.

I meal prepped when we got home yesterday, as usual so I'll have healthy food choices for the week.  I've been doing the 21 Day Fix workouts for a while now and I'm looking forward to changing that up this week.  I've ordered the Beachbody Body Beast program.  It should arrive tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to starting that! I'm planning to continue running in the morning with my friends and will do the strength training program in the evenings after work.

I'm also excited that I'll be coaching my Pathways group again beginning next month.  They'll be training for the Tulsa Run 15k. Meanwhile,  I'll be training for my next half marathon.  I've decided that I would like to run the Big Cottonwood Half Marathon in Salt Lake City in September. I'll be ramping up my mileage again and am more than a little nervous.  I'm tired of being injured all the time.  Hopefully the cross training will make a difference.  I've also decided to get a gait analysis at the OU Tulsa human performance lab. They will put me on a treadmill and film me running for about 15 minutes then they will break it down and tell me what I'm doing wrong and hopefully how to correct my form to help prevent future injuries. I'll post specifics about that tomorrow.

So, thats all I've got for now.  Until next time-get up, get out,  and get moving! Remember to be awesome today!

Your friend,

Theresa

Workout Wednesday

Good morning folks! 

Happy Fourth of July week! 

I'm on vacation this week,  hence the radio silence.

We're at the lake for an extended visit. We brought my with us this time.  So far, so good but I have no doubt this will end up being quite an adventure!

I'm doing my very best to eat as healthy as I can.  And I'm making sure to get in some type of workout every day. Monday I did a chest,  shoulders,  biceps and triceps.  Tuesday I ran 4 miles with friends before we left.  This morning I ran 3 miles and did step ups, chair dips,  and incline pushups.  I have my laptop (just no wifi) and work out dvds, so I'll either run or do body weight exercises for my Thursday,  Friday,  Saturday workouts.  They do paddle board yoga here at the marina,  so I might check into that!

I'm posting a link to a workout for your for a Workout Wednesday. This looks like a good one! I'll try this when I get back home. Insane Legs & Core Workout You've Never Done!: http://youtu.be/pp2srLZ4eYc

Ok, that's all for now!  Until next time--get up, get out,  and get moving! Whatever you do today,  be awesome at it!

Your friend,

Theresa