Refocusing

More often than not, I seem to be refocusing. I refocus on workouts, nutrition, cleaning schedules, and priorities in general. Life seems to be a constant juggling act, and more and more items keep getting tossed in. It's hard not to drop something from time to time.

Running is the item that got dropped a while back and you know what? I miss it.

I set a goal for this year to hit 500 miles and I stalled out at 250 due to illness, frustration and then the heat. Frustration and heat are excuses and I know it. I know that you have to push through frustration and I know that there are ways around the heat. The time has come for me to stop making the excuses and start logging miles again. I'm a happier person when I run and I'm tired of feeling like a quitter.

This past week I started to refocus with Focus T25. The amount of sweat my body produces in 25 minutes with these workouts, is both amazing and gross. I'm hoping to build my cardio back up with this routine, so easing back into running will be a little smoother.

The next part of my refocus plan is an August "Clean Eating" accountability that I will be running over on the Facebook Page. I'll be posting the basics of clean eating, shopping guides and recipes over there each day. My eating has been pretty good, but it took a nose dive during Mike's vacation this past week. I'm hoping that as a group, we can stay accountable, help each other find new recipes and form new, healthier habits. I've always had success while working in groups and I'm hoping that those participating will too.

As well as the clean eating accountability, I plan on sharing a daily yoga workout on the Facebook page each day. If there is one thing I've learned during my fitness journey, it's that no matter how badly I suck at yoga, it is important to my routine. I'll benefit from a stretching/muscle recovery aspect as well as mentally with meditation/stress relief. I always feel better after doing yoga, yet I always manage to skip it...I clearly make no sense and need to fix this.

Ultimately, life happens, and our grand plans don't always work out as planned. As long as you take a moment to stop, see where things went wrong and refocus, your goals can still be reached.

Are you ready to refocus with me? What aspect of your routine do you need to focus on?

I'm A Rugged Maniac!

Back in March, I was participating in the #FurtherFasterFurther badge challenge and feeling like a total badass. I was on the top of my game  and achieving things I never thought I could do. One Saturday I was scrolling through Groupon and found an amazing deal on the Rugged Maniac mud run, so I obviously bought it and felt instant happiness! Poor Mike.

Fast forward to July 14th....race day. I had fallen off the running wagon, my cardio wasn't close to where it should be and I was now nervous as I drove to the event with Mike. I didn't know if I could hack the obstacles that were waiting for me, but thankfully we were doing the race with Mike's childhood friend, Irwin and his two kids, Jess and Ryan... and this wasn't their first mud run!

We arrived early to park, pick up our race packets and hang out for a bit. We were in the first wave for the day, and I was grateful for that since it was going to be in the upper 90's!

Top: Hanging out before the race - Bottom Left: Let the fun begin! - Bottom Right: 1/2 mile run. *Special thanks to Lisa for taking these photos!*

Our first obstacle was a wall that you had to jump in order to get to the starting line. I honestly felt a little intimidated by it, but I made it over on the first try, and I felt the doubt wash away and some confidence kick in. The first stretch of the course was a pretty easy 1/2 mile run before we hit our first obstacle, which were two A-frames that we had to climb up and over. From there, we headed into the woods and were greeted by ankle to knee-deep mud (which smelled awful) and some 5 foot walls to hop, like the one at the start gate. These were a little trickier to do because my feet and the wall were slippery with mud, but I made it over all of them on the first shot, which made me feel kinda badass again. From there it was more mud and then a football style tire run with swinging tires that you had to push through. Our reward for making it through was a water station, which ended up being the only one on the course!

 

Top: A-Frames - Bottom Left: Tire carry & hurdles - Bottom Right: Sprint to the Finish              *Special thanks to Lisa for taking these photos!*

After our water break we headed onto around the motocross hills and toward the barbed wire obstacles. Thankfully the barbed wire wasn't as low as I was anticipating, so I was able to crawl under it without army crawling. The downside to crawling? I wore shorts and didn't have knee-pads so my knees got really cut up! Lesson. Learned. The next obstacle I remember was the slide! Nothing like sliding into a lake of muddy water to cool off!

 

Left: Fire jumps - Top Right: Barbed Wire - Bottom Right: Sliding into muddy water.                 *Photos taken by Rugged Maniac Photographers*[/caption]

I honestly don't remember the order of the rest of the obstacles. I think the drainage pipes were next and I skipped that one. I'm EXTREMELY claustrophobic and didn't feel like having a panic attack if I had a hard time making my way back up the second pipe. I think it was this obstacle where my teammate Jessica's hair got stuck in the barbed wire while making her way between pipes....OUCH!

 

We're Rugged Maniacs!!  (Ryan, Irwin, Jessica, Mike and Myself)

Thankfully there were lots of sprinklers along the course so you could wash mud off your hands and out of your eyes. Although the one time I needed a sprinkler I couldn't find one. I lost my traction going down a small mud slide and ended up going completely under the muddy water at one point. I wasn't expecting it so I didn't have time to hold my nose and ended up with mud in the my eyes and up my nose....talk about gross! I had to skip the obstacle after that because I couldn't see.

A big thank you to the volunteer who offered me a clean spot on her t-shirt to wipe my eyes!

From there it was the fire jumps and then off to the final obstacle which I failed at. Between the mud in my eyes and the amount of mud on the wall, I just couldn't pull myself all the way up. I was pissed I couldn't make it to the top and across the cargo net, but I achieved a lot and I was proud. Mike and I waited for our teammate on the other side of the wall and then we sprinted to the finish line (and Irwin's kids who ran off ahead racing each other to the final obstacle and finish line. I loved the competitive nature between them)!

 

Before & After

The finish line had a water table which was a welcome blurry site. I grabbed two bottles and started rinsing out my eyes, while rehydrating. From there we showered off, headed to the truck to change and then went back to the after party for our post race beer, music and snacks!

Overall, the course was challenging but not awful. I loved seeing all of the team-work going on around us as well as all of the laughter. I can't wait to do another mud run with this team....they were awesome!

 

Cheers!

Have you ever completed a mud run? Which one and what did you think of it?

{Semi Wordless Wednesday} Halfway There

Yesterday I hit the halfway mark on my journey to 500 miles. It came a month later than I thought, I almost got hit by a falling tree branch on the trail and I apparently didn't lace up correctly, because I ended up with a killer blister, but I did it!

{Wordless Wednesday} My Happy Place

Celebrating A Milestone

Yesterday was Fitness Friday and I reached a pretty big milestone! For the first time ever I hit double digits on a run/walk! The furthest I had ever walked prior, was 8 miles back in 2010. My furthest run was 7.5 back in early March.

I started out running yesterday and for some reason, I just kept going. Hitting that double digit has been something I've wanted to do for awhile now, but I never really went for it. I started to get tired and struggled for a little while around miles 4 & 5. That little voice of negativity in my head started to beat me up, but I pushed through and decided I was going for it. I shut that little voice up by deciding that my time didn't matter today, all that mattered was hitting my mileage of choice.

Once I made up my mind, the rest was pretty easy. I slowed down and walked when I needed to and picked up the pace and ran when I felt good. I have to get my legs used to carrying me for longer runs and they're not quite ready to do that yet. Until they are, there is nothing wrong with slowing down to a light jog or fast paced walk.

I know that with determination, time and practice, I will be able to run the full 10 miles. My goal is actually 13.1 with a respectable pace, but I have to remember that it takes time to build up to that. I have to remove the self imposed pressure that I place on myself to perform at great levels. I have to learn how to celebrate my milestones, instead of getting mad that I didn't reach them at a certain level, or by glancing over them to start working towards the next goal.

Over the past four years, I have skipped many celebrations and I regret that. I regret pushing myself towards the next goal instead of taking some time to reflect on where I came from and what I just achieved.

The beauty of this journey is that I am always learning...and as a result, I will continue to grow as a person.

Yesterday I put the Further in #FurtherFasterForever. Down the road I hope to add the Faster, but I have Forever to work at it and enjoy the celebrations as I go.

Feet, Meet Pavement. Pavement, Meet Feet.

It's been a month since I have gone out for a run, thanks to the acute asthma I developed during my bout with the plague.  Over the past few days, I haven't been relying on my inhalers as much so I decided it was time to try. I laced up my running shoes, put on an old race shirt to show support for Boston and hit the pavement again.

My plan was to drive up to the recreation center and just do a few laps around the parking lot and soccer field to see how I felt. Surprisingly I felt really good and my goal of 3 miles turned into 6.5 miles!

It wasn't a pretty run and I didn't expect it to be. I had to slow down every 1/4 mile to give my lungs a break, but I kept going and it felt great.

One of the things that kept me going, besides the gorgeous weather and my stubbornness, was the amount of people on the trail. Normally I see a few walkers and one or two other runners, but today there were a lot more people out and they all had on blue & yellow or a race shirt. It was heart warming to see people doing a small gesture and showing that they cared.

 

Today I wore an old race t-shirt and did a #RunForBoston

After the events at the Boston Marathon yesterday afternoon, I was left stunned and appalled. What should have been a happy achievement for so many athletes, turned into a scary and senseless part of history that had life altering impacts on many.

Over the past few months, I have been privileged to become friends with many runners. I have seen the love they have for running, and have even experienced it for myself. I have seen how hard they train, how willing they are to help new runners and what a wonderful community of supporting people they are.

My heart goes out to the city of Boston, the runners, the spectators who were excited to see their friends and loved ones cross the finish line and the volunteers who were forced to face circumstances that undoubtedly never entered anyone's mind that day. My thoughts go out to the victims and their families, as well as all of the runners who never got to cross the finish line and finish the race they trained so hard for.

Today, I ran to show my support for a wonderful community.

My Week So Far + Five Things

This week started out dragging and then suddenly flew by!

My weekend was nice and quiet. Saturday was a rest day for me, which my body truly appreciated since I've been pushing it so hard. As I was lazily laying in bed, I stumbled upon a Groupon for the Color Me Rad 5K, which is taking place in May. Of course I couldn't resist signing up for another Fun Run...especially since it was only 20 bucks! After a lazy day and dinner, the hubs and I watched "Oz The Great and Powerful", which I enjoyed but had some issues with. Have you seen it? What were your thoughts?

Sunday I earned my final badge in the #FurtherFasterFurther Road ID Challenge, by doing a 3.17 mile run, wearing green for St. Patty's Day. After my run, I begin cooking our St. Patty's Day Feast and then we spent the rest of the day relaxing and eating.

I ended up earning 31 badges....some had double or triple worth so I think I ended up 37 or 38!

The rest of this week has consisted of my usual. I took another rest day and just stretched on Monday, Tuesday I ran, did some time on the trainer and then went and cashed in on my last massage. The hubs had given me a three month membership for Christmas and it was hands down THE BEST GIFT EVER. Since this was my last massage and I had a $5 off coupon, I decided to upgrade to a 90-minute session! It was painfully-blissful and just what my body needed!

Wednesday I did ChaLean Extreme, Push 1 & 2 and then followed it with 10.5 on the trainer. I also took a ride up to The Vitamin Shoppe and picked up some Quest bars. I've seen the lovely RunEMZ rave about them on Twitter and Instagram, so I had to check them out. Upon returning to my vehicle, I immediately tried the Chocolate Brownie and I was not disappointed at all! I need to get my booty over to GNC (since Vitamin Shoppe sucks and had limited stock of these) so I can try the other flavors she recommended.

Today has been a rough day. The hubs woke up puking around 1am, then my son woke up at 3am puking and finally the girl woke at 6am and followed their lead. I honestly don't know how I escaped this, but I am truly grateful, as I am a total wuss when it comes to vomit. I did however complete a 15.5 mile ride on the trainer a little while ago and I'd like to do a short run as well as some yoga later.

Now for the Five Things...

The lovely Jackie, from Nora & Jac, tagged me in a Five Random Things post (which I didn't realize was "random" so I'm winging this as I go) the other day, and I've been a super slacker about blogging, but I'm finally completing it soooo...

1. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York in this apartment building:

2. I HATE mayo...loathe it. I'm so against it, I don't even like to touch the jar in the fridge. There is something about it that creeps me out.

3. I have "corpse extremities". Seriously... my hands and feet are ALWAYS ice cold. I can have socks and boots on all day, take them off and I have toesicles. The hubs just LOVES when I stick my icy, dead hands on his back.

4. I love taking road trips. Granted, I am referring to road trips sans kids. I love driving, seeing the landscape and listening to whatever I want on the radio.

Finally, I'm borrowing one from Jac's post, because my brain isn't really functioning due to lack of sleep...

5. I've had many people tell me that I look like Mary-Louise Parker...you can be the judge.

Okay...there you have it. My week in review as well as Five Random Things about me. If you want to join in, please feel free and leave a link to your post below!

Happy Pi Day {Mini Workout}

Today's workout had me living the Life of Pi.... no no no....I wasn't stuck on a boat with a tiger name Richard Parker ...I just had to do things with the number 3.14 in mind.

I started off my morning with a 3.14 run on the trail. It was not a pretty run and my head was seriously not present at all. I was pissed off at myself after being so close to beating my PR just a few days ago, but then I switched my mind set and gave myself credit for showing up and getting it done. Good job, Nikki!

After my run, I hit the trainer for a double Pi ride and it felt great. After pushing myself for 25 mile rides last week, 6.28 feels like a walk in the park.

I haven't pushed myself this hard in a long time and it feels great! I actually like taking an active recovery day instead of a full rest day. It teaches me that I don't have to go hard all the time, and that it's nice to just slow down and enjoy the journey sometimes.

To finish off today's Pi celebration, I didn't have a slice of pie... instead I did this circuit workout and worked up a great sweat.

[caption id="attachment_2784" align="aligncenter" width="376"] 

A big Thank You to the Billboard Hot 100 on Spotify for keeping my pace high!

{Wordless Wednesday} More #FurtherFasterForever Badges

Click Here To See The Other Badges I've Earned So Far

I Am Not A Fan Of The Gym

I'm pretty sure many of you who follow my blog already figured out, that I am NOT a fan of the gym. As a matter of fact, I can't tell you the last time I even worked out in one. Possibly pre-children, so that would be over a decade ago!

This past week, however, I entered a gym again.

As you have seen, I've been participating in the #FurtherFasterForever Badge Challenge. I admittedly can be a very competitive person with myself, so I looked over the badges many, many times and set my sites on the ones I felt I could do. I normally do my running up at my local recreation center, which has paved route options as well as a 5k trail option. I also have a stationary bike at home, so I could attempt some of the cycling badges too!

The issue however, was that Mother Nature decided to bless the East Coast with yet another dose of craptastic weather. I powered through the wind and some rain that she dropped on us (and even got the hubs to join me on one of those lovely mornings), but when the slick snow fell, I admitted defeat and headed to the gym, in the clubhouse at my mom's development.

 

Mike and I after a windy, rainy 5K.

 

The slick, snowy mess that Mother Nature decided to drop on us, was my morning warm-up before hitting the gym for the first time in years.

Less stubborn people most likely would have taken a rest day or just did the bike, but I had a badge to obtain. Yes...I am THAT thickheaded.

Anyway.... I must admit there is a nice set-up up there, and it is much smaller than your normal monthly membership gyms. They had a decent amount of treadmills, a few different bikes and an elliptical. They also had a weight circuit and an indoor pool. The pool would have been awesome if I knew how to swim....sigh.

Since I was there to run, I picked a
hamster wheeltreadmill and started it up. I instantly felt dread and doom take over as I ran but got nowhere. There was no breeze, no change of scenery, nothing. Just the sound of a belt moving below me and the yapping of some other people in the room with me. I realized I couldn't look down or I'd get dizzy. I also couldn't look left or right for the same reason. Sigh....I was stuck looking forward at either CNN or my own reflection in a picture on the wall. What felt like eternity was only 1.25 miles and I stepped off in defeat. I decided to hop on a bike, clear my head and then have another go. My second attempt yielded 3.25 miles, which I was happy with.

 

Top left: Pool Area, Top Right: Cardio Area, Bottom Left: Weight Area,

Bottom Right: My first attempt on the hamster wheel.

I left the gym that day happy that I was able to log some mileage, but also in awe of the people I see on Twitter and Instagram who log all these miles on the hamster wheel of doom treadmill. I guess it's one of those examples of  "to each their own".

My other issue with the gym is time restraints. If it's busy, you can only use a machine for 30 minutes....I guess that's not awful, but I have days where I can go further and longer and I like being able to do so, without someone pointing to a sign-up sheet to hint that your time is up. (BTW...that did not happen to me here, but it had in the past.)

I'm sure I'll have to go back again this week, as there is chatter of another storm brewing. I'm not looking forward to it, but I'm grateful (despite my bitching) to have access to the alternative.

Do you run on the hamster wheel to nowhere treadmill? Do you have any tips or tricks to make it more tolerable?

{Update} 26 Miles For 26 Victims

Last week I blogged about signing up for the 26 Miles For 26 Victims event that #FurtherFasterForever was running over on their site. When I decided to do this, I knew it was a lofty goal, but I knew I was capable of doing it.

This was not an easy to do, especially for a newbie to running like me. My legs were sore, my knees started to hate me and I ended up doing quite a bit of speed walking during some of these miles, but I did it and that's what counts!

I am over the moon happy with this accomplishment, but the cause I did it for is such a somber one. Each one of those miles I ran represented a child or teacher that was taken from their loved ones too soon. A person who set out about their day like we all do, everyday. A child who was excitedly waiting for Santa to arrive and teachers who were planning their shopping and holiday festivities with loved ones, but never got to see those anticipated moments.

Each mile made me appreciate all that I have, especially the two miles that we did as a family. It might not be much, but it is mine and I will treasure it for as long as I am blessed enough to have it.