Knee Rehab Week 10: Pushing Boundaries

My PT pushed me around during my one session. Instead of focusing solely on strength, he has been testing my balance and landings with lots of single leg and hopping exercises. I'm not that great at hopping backwards on my non-dominate leg, shocker!

I've been slowly increasing my run time and hit another milestone this week. My "long" run also included a change of scenery and elevation.

Following yoga poses for 12 days challenged my body in ways that it hasn't been in a long time.

Tuesday - 3.22 miles
The plan: run 30 minutes

With the nearly 80 inches of snow piled into snow banks lining the roads, there's really no safe place to run outside. Spent 30 minutes on the treadmill and it was the best run I've had in months. My knee is still feeling mazing, but the tight TFL I've been dealing with didn't give me any problems at all.

Thursday - 4.21 miles
The plan: run 40 minutes

One thing I  haven't gotten used to living in NH is the dry, winter heat. My day started with a killer headache that just didn't want to go away. A good run on the treadmill was just the medicine I needed!

Saturday - 5.19 miles
The plan: run with Winter Warriors at Runner's Alley

I joined some fellow MRTT-ers at the Saucony event at our local running store. After sharing why we #WantToRun, we bundled up for a very cold 5 mile run. It was my longest and hilliest run since surgery, and I'm happy with how it went.

Weekly Workouts:

Monday: FAB ab day 16 + PT

Tuesday: run + FAB ab day 17

Wednesday: FAB ab day 18 + PT exercises

Thursday: FAB ab day 19 + run

Friday: FAB ab day 20 + PT exercises

Saturday: Run + FAB ab day 21

Sunday: FAB ab day 22 + PT exercises

#BringingYogaBack Prana Challenge
For the past 12 days, I've pushed myself to try poses that I never thought I could do. I learned a lot about my body's strength and flexibility. Check out the pRana goodies and use this discount code leapnpinks15 - for 15% off - valid through 2/28!

What boundaries are you pushing?

What #NoExcuses Looks Like

This is what #NoExcuses looks like to me.

It's tackling that hill. It's pushing through moments that are uncomfortable. It's embracing the challenges (like knee surgery) and using them as motivation. It's making it to the finish, the top. It's never quitting.

#NoExcuses means making good food choices, too. Being snowed in by winter storms can seriously mess with my routine causing me to overeat and just eat plain junk. I'm jumping on the WIAW bandwagon today and sharing some of my recent selections.

gluten-free salmon patties

parm-crusted haddock, green beans, and rice

sausage and spinach egg muffins with PB&J rice cakes

strawberries

tootsie-pop!

What does #NoExcuses look like to you?

This post is part of the Workout Wednesday link up hosted by 

Diatta, Sheila, Amanda and Heather

I've been tagged! #TaketheLeap Yoga Challenge

I was tagged by Sandra from Organic Runner Mom and Jen from Running With The Girls to #TaketheLeap. I wasn't going to join this challenge because I don't really know yoga. But then I thought, isn't that what the challenge is all about…taking a leap to achieve our fitness goals? So I'm going to use this challenge to help me add yoga stretching to my daily routine.

The challenge officially kicked off yesterday with a fun yoga Mad Lib (my answers are in bold).

When I think about yoga, the first thought that comes to mind is challenge. Yoga scares me and makes me feel stiff.

That’s why I am SO excited to participate in prAna’s Take The Leap 30 days of Yoga Challenge with Sweat Pink. I plan to pose my way to a more flexible and strong 2015!

For me, the biggest challenge when it comes to yoga is knowing what I'm doing. Taking the Leap with prAna and Sweat Pink is a great way for me to find knowledge to become a healthy runner.

My favorite place to yoga is outside because it is so beautiful and open.

Here’s a photo of me in my very best triangle pose.

I tag Allie from Running on Peanut Butter  and Jen from Thirty-three and Counting 

I want these fabulous bloggers to share their very best yoga pose photos, this fun madlib and of course, I challenge them to join me on this fun 30 day yoga journey.

Come on y’all, Take the Leap with me!

Join prAna’s & Sweat Pink’s Take the Leap 30 Days of Yoga Challenge and be eligible to win $500 worth of prAna gear and / or be the lucky winner who gets to gift $500 worth of prAna gear to one lucky winner. They just launched their new spring collection so you best get on it!

If I win I would gift the $500 to Sandra & Jen because they tagged me to join the challenge.

Join the Take the Leap with prAna and Sweat Pink Facebook group / event which we’ll use for updates, sharing,and inspiration: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1525412337742204/

 and event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/423377431152799

And join the challenge on Instagram, Twitter, and your blog using the hashtags:

#TakeTheLeap

#prana

#sweatpink

And of course, tag @prana @FitApproach 

YOGA ON!

#NoExcuses Badasses

One of my favorite parts of the Sweat Pink #NoExcuses Challenge is the inspiration you get from fellow sweaties. Just take a stroll on Instagram or Twitter and you will find hundreds of motivating posts and encouraging stories from fitness lovers of all levels showing how they live #NoExcuses every day.

That's why I am loving this week's blogging challenge:
Nominate two people who LIVE #NoExcuses every day. There are no hard-written rules; they just have to be people who kick butt, in your opinion, and embody #NoExcuses.

Instantly I thought of my two nominees and I know you will agree that they are totally BADASS!

Nancy from Living the Dream

Nothing gets in the way of Nancy's workout. This is one badass mama who can whip up a spectacular DIY themed birthday party for her girls, take care of her husband who recently had ACL surgery and still get in her workouts. She runs, swims, yogas, strength trains…you name it, she does it. Fancy Nancy is a Boston Marathon finisher, collegiate soccer and softball player, and a Feetures! celebrity!

Nicolasa from Shoelaces and Bibs

Nicolasa takes her badass to another level through her commitment to others. She runs with Team in Training to raise money for Leukemia, coaches runners to their first 5Ks, and dedicates her miles to Shaylene, her Run 4 Buddy who she plans to meet this year. While doing all this, Nicolasa is also mommy to an adorable little boy, teaches elementary school, and gets herself to booty barre class before the sun comes up! If that doesn't make her badass, how about running her first marathon?

Who would you nominate for the #NoExcuses Badass award?

I'm MAD passionate for #NoExcuses 2015

It's the first week of the Sweat Pink #NoExcuses challenge and things are already getting insane! Did you seen all the planking on Instagram yesterday? 

Today I'm joining the Sweat Pink team by sharing my fitness story with some Mad Lib fun. 

Want to play along? Just copy the Mad Lib text below, fill in the underlined portions, and share! 

• Hey 2015, it’s me AmyC (nickname, spirit animal, real name, blog name)
• This year I would like to build my overall strength, volunteer at another race, and go on more group runs with family and friends.
• It would also be super duper awesome if I also did a race-cation somewhere exotic and warm this year. It’s not a resolution, though, just a reminder to myself to try and have the best year yet because I can!
• The thing I am looking forward to most this year is spending time with family and friends on the Cape and logging lots of miles together.
• I’ll use the one thing that truly gets me out of bed in the morning which is a fun workout to help me get up, get sweaty (verb) and get after my #NoExcuses 2015.
• Speaking of excuses (ahem), my very favorite excuse is that I don't need to and I have used it to get out of doing stretching and strength on more than a thousand (number) occasions.
• I vow to move my body and be more healthy this year even if it means I have to face my fear and do things I don't like to do.
• Even if my alarm clock gets eaten by the dog in the middle of the night, I'll still find time to be active every day.
• I will stop blaming the kids [ex: kids, dog, husband] for eating the rest of the YPPs when everyone knows it was really me.
• My knee injury [job, hair, car, husband, kids] is not the reason I make excuses. I will show my knee injury [same as before] who's boss this year and get my long run [type of sweaty activity] on.
• I know that slow running [type of workout] is better than quitting. [noun]
• I will reward myself by picking out some awesome new fitness gear.
• No Excuses 2015 has just begun and already I am imagining myself a winner. I can’t wait to rock a hoodie (article of clothing) from Augusta Active. I can’t wait till my sweaty friends are jealous of how fresh, clean and refreshed (adj) I am between workouts with help from ShowerPill body wipes. I can see myself rocking warrior [yoga pose / workout move] in new Own the Draft top [article of clothing] from Actio926 and looking fit and fly while doing it. And of course, I’ll be taking my workouts to the next level and improving my muscle tone [noun] with my new ActivMotion Bar to help me train for my next  half marathon [distance] race with Sasquatch Racing.
• Oh, and let’s not forget how amazing my racer backs [article of clothing] will smell in my / during my summer runs [favorite type of workout] after washing with some WIN Detergent. And lastly, I’ll keep rocking my 2015 with clean eats and nutrition from Beaming with Health!

• Tag, Tweet, shout-out, call, text, fax or email 3 friends to take this survey and share how they will have a #NoExcuses 2015. Remind your friends to simply fill in the underlined parts!
• Use the #NoExcuses hashtag and post to win prizes from Augusta Active, ShowerPill, ActivMotion Bar, WIN Detergent, Actio926, Beaming with Health, and Sasquatch Racing.

Tagging:
Nancy @ Living the Dream
Michelle @ Running with Attitude
Nicolasa @ Shoelaces and Bibs


Did you share your own Mad Lib fitness story? Leave a link in the comments so I can check it out!

Fit Friday: Holiday Sweat Challenge + #FFTriumph

One thing I have learned over the last couple of weeks is that I need to work on my overall strength, especially if I want to run injury-free. To do that I need to stay focused whether I am running or not.

So, in a couple of weeks I will be starting my first Holiday Sweat Challenge with Amanda from Run to the Finish. You might recognize the name since I have been a fan and sharing Amanda's workouts on the blog now and then.

Disclosure: I received the SweatPink Ambassador discount

I joined this challenge for three reasons:

It's a six week challenge. Six weeks of getting motivated and staying focused…right through the holidays when it can be the hardest time to stay focused. 

It has two things that seriously motivate me: a friendly and supportive COMPETITION and there are PRIZES up for grabs!  

I'll get personalized workouts to match my fitness level.

I can't wait to get started!

#FFTriumph

On another note, my TFL test run yesterday before my PT appointment was not as perfect as I would have liked. I was hoping to have a big write up about how fabulous my two mile run with Run Club was a fitness triumph, but sadly, the post-run TFL pain returned by the time I made it to Dr. Bri's office.  

And that's how I ended up on the no-running list again.

Despite the injury plagued year I've been having, I am determined to get better and get back to running asap. Let life outside my running comfort zone begin.

It's frustrating being injured and only able to run 2 miles, but I'll never stop! It just feels too good. #fftriumph #FitFluential #TeamWR #WRWhyIRun

A photo posted by AmyC (@runningescapades) on Nov 11, 2014 at 1:27pm PST

What are your holiday sweat plans?

What was your latest fitness triumph? Have you entered the FitFluential November challenge?

Training Truths: ZOOMA week 8 - Increase Intensity

ZOOMA training week 8 was supposed to be about upping the intensity of my training with more miles and longer training runs. Instead I increased my sensibility and took care of the tight calf that turned into a full-fledged shin splint with some days off from running, lots of icing, compression gear, and self-massage.

I also learned some other great tips for dealing with shin splints from my runner friends:

• pick up newspaper using your toes
• air-write the alphabet with your toes
• rub ice cubes in circles on your shin
• drink more water

Monday - REST + barre3 No Props: Legs + Core

Tuesday - REST + #FFWallSit challenge day 1

Wednesday - REST + barre3 Studio Strength: Legs + Glutes ---> lots of shaking going on! #FFWallSit challenge day 2

Thursday - REST + #FFWallSit challenge day 3

Friday - REST + #FFWallSit challenge day 4

Saturday - Changed up my long run to not un-do the healing of my shin splint from the week of rest. Instead of a 12 miler, I ran 7 and then rode my bike the remaining 5. It was warm and humid, but I took it very easy and felt ok. Felt a little tightness in the evening, so I know I still have healing to do. #FFWallSit challenge day 5

Sunday - #FFWallSit challenge day 6

ZOOMA Cape Cod is only 3 weeks away and even though next week is Peak Week in my training program, I'm going to keep things easy and let my shin splint finish healing.

I'm also starting some fun fitness projects at school with the students and faculty this week. I'm looking forward to sharing more soon!