I run. I can eat what I want.

"I run.  I can eat what I want."  Umm ... No.  Guilty as charged.  Just because you run, this does not give you the right to eat anything you want -- and retain the body of a Victoria's Secret model unless 1) you have an insane amount of money giving you the opportunity to spend thousands of dollars on personal training and a personal chef or 2) you were so fortunately blessed with the crazy genes these women have.  Sadly, I was not blessed with the "VS genes" nor do I have the salary of Warren Buffet.  Sorry Ryan.  Once I started picking up the miles I would convince myself if I ran 6+ miles/day I could have that Chick-fil-A combo and not feel guilty about it.  Or I could make that enormous bowl of brownie and vanilla ice cream that I had been craving all day.  Nope.

Since I have committed to running a marathon in September and have been reading one of those marathon training books, I do not have the right to eat what I want because I want to successfully complete that glorious 26 26.2 mile run.  (We must not forget those important last two tenths of a mile.)  I do not know what I was thinking -- perhaps those fries, that chocolate, and the pasta had special powers turning me into a Running She-Ra Princess of Power or something.  Who knows ...

I am not a bad a eater all the time, but I certainly have my moments and my food vices.  For example, I have made the green smoothie as seen in the previous post several times over past few days in hopes of getting on the health train, but I tend to fall off as quick as I get on.  This is no longer allowed starting now.  I will force myself to be more health conscious and incorporating smoothies is a great way to do this.  As for dinner, I am focusing on larger vegetable servings and small portions of protein or pasta.  Additionally, this whole six small meals a day is another thing I am trying, but it is not an easy task.  Because one of my favorite things to do is snack, I would not have thought this would be such a problem but it is.  I think I need to tone down the breakfast and lunch (hence the smoothies) in order to make room for a little snack time.  I tend to go BIG the first two meals of day. 

Again, because I have decided to torture myself on September 22, my eating habits must be altered and this is a struggle for a junk food addict like myself.  I have vowed that once the sweets are out of the house, no more will be allowed in.  I have approximately 10 Peanut Easter M&M's left and a quarter of a jar of Nutella left.  Sigh.  (Honestly, I just threw the M&M's away thinking about this post.)  From now on, my chocolate craving will be alleviated with ONE cup of 1% Horizon Chocolate Milk twice a day.  Thank goodness this milk is phenomenal in both taste and nutrition.  Let's disregard the sugar amount.  I can still have a little, right?  So anyway, veggies, fruits, whole grain, and string cheese are on the rise at Chez Larson -- more so than before.  If I am going to run this marathon in the time I want, I have to get serious about my eating habits.  After all, I did not pay $100+ to finish 26.2 miles in more than 4 hours.

Looking at this post and thinking about my terrible eating, I guess I am fortunate that like to exercise because this has yet to be an issue.  My days are not complete unless I workout for at least an hour doing some sort of cardiovascular or strength training activity.  It could be worse.

For Your Information: You need to burn 3,500 calories to lose 1 lb.

 

Smoothie

This is a great smoothie -- either as a meal or an after workout snack.  I made it for lunch today (about 12 oz.) and it kept me full. 

Ingredients

1 spoonful of peanut butter
1/2 to 1 cup of vanilla yogurt
2 cups of FRESH spinach
A splash of orange juice
1 banana

Blend well until smooth
* Courtesy of SkinnyTaste.com

I know the spinach sounds really gross, but the peanut butter completely covers up the taste which is awesome (otherwise I probably would not be able to get it down).  Because I like my smoothies cold, I did add a little crushed ice which made it a little better for me.

Colorado Races

3 - 5 Mile Races
Fans on the Field, Denver - 5K
Valentine's Day, Denver- 5K
Turkey Trot, Denver - 5K
Runnin' of the Green, Denver - 7K
Warrior Dash, Copper Mountain - 5K 
Cherry Creek Sneak, Denver - 5 miles and 10 miles
Lucky Laces St. Patty's Day, Denver - 10K 
 

Half Marathon
Denver Rock n' Roll, Denver
Denver 1/2 Marathon, Denver
Georgetown to Idaho Springs, Georgetown
*Slacker Half Marathon, Georgetown
*Vail Pass Half Marathon, Vail
*Steamboat Springs Half Marathon, Steamboat Springs


Marathon
Denver Rock n' Roll
*Steamboat Springs Marathon

*Estes Park Marathon, Estes Park

Relays
*Wild West Relay, Fort Collins to Steamboat

* indicates To be completed

What I enjoy during running

I just wanted to share some random things that I have enjoyed throughout my running.

Frog Bra from Title 9

Title 9 has amazing support wear (if you catch my drift).  One of their sports bras, the Frog Bra, has been amazing.  I have two of them, and they are still going strong after many small races, 5 half marathons, and a marathon (to be completed in September 2012).

The Frog Bra retails around $33.

Nike+ Sportsband 

Once I figured out how to use it, this has been a great tool for keeping track of my distance, time, calories burned, etc.  It is not 100% accurate, but it can be darn close if you are calibrate it correctly. 

Music 
I was born in 1979 and love me some 90s music.

O.P.P - Naughty by Nature
Feel Me Flow - Naughty by Nature
Faster - Matt Nathansan
Control, Nasty, and Rhythm Nation - Janet Jackson
4 Minutes - Madonna and Justin Timberlake
Stronger - Kelly Clarkson
I Won't Give Up - Jason Mraz
Get Low - Lil' Jon and The East Side Boyz
Good Life - One Republic
Paradise - Cold Play
She Got the Honey - Mat Kearney
Run - Matt Nathansan and Sugarland
One Week - Barenaked Ladies
Can't Touch This - M.C. Hammer
We Are Young - FUN

Running Shoes 

Asics Gel-Kayano 16

These have been great shoes.

Hydration Products
Nathan has some great hydration products.

Hydration Belt
Handheld
Waistpack

First Road Race

Outside of my high school cross-country days, my first official road race was the Fans on the Field 5k in Denver, Colorado 2006.  This race was such a struggle for me because in addition to being out of shape, I was living at an increased altitude of 5280ft.  I had no idea altitude would have such a huge impact on my exercising ... I could not even complete a mile.  And in conjunction with this, I was constantly dehydrated.  It seemed like I was drinking liters of water but that still was not enough.  I think it took about 3 months to get to an acceptable running pace (a pace that I was still not proud of).  I knew that I would have to set a running goal in order to better my running and that's when I decided to join my husband in my first road race -- because I knew my running would not improve if I did not have something to work toward. 

It was a neat race because the last lap was running the CO Rockies baseball field.  If I remember correctly I think it took me about 37 minutes to run the race.  I know that's not a terrible pace but there was obviously a lot of need for improvement. 

Any who, after running the race I quickly came down with the racing bug.  I loved how I felt after finishing a race (the feeling was completely different than when I finished a race in high school).  I could not wait to register for another one and better my time.

Needless to say, the rest is history.  After several 5ks, 10 milers, and five half marathons, on September 22, 2012 I will be running my first marathon.  Although I am completely stoked to endure everything that goes along with completing a marathon, obviously I am extremely nervous.  I am constantly thinking: What if I do not train enough? What if I train too much?  Will my legs be able to make it through? What if my anxiety gets the best of me and I fail?  These questions and so many more are constantly running through my head.  I know everything will be okay, and I will finish the race but there is always that what if?  

I have set a goal for myself to finish in 4 hours or less and damn it, I am going to hit that goal.  My thoughts are if you set a goal you need to reach it because otherwise there is no point in setting them.

Anyway ... the training continues.  It's time to lace up the sneaks and hit the pavement for an easy 10 miler this morning.

I Run Because

I saw this the other day and wanted to share it.  Whenever I do not think I can run anymore, I think of this quote.  Being able to do the simple things in life are constantly taken for granted, not just by me but by everyone.  We need to appreciate what we have and what we can do because it can be taken away in the blink of an eye.  Do what you love with no regrets -- or I like to say: Balls to the Walls, Folks.

I RUN BECAUSE I CAN.

WHEN I GET TIRED,

I REMEMBER THOSE THAT CAN'T RUN,

WHAT THEY WOULD GIVE TO HAVE THIS SIMPLE GIFT I TAKE FOR GRANTED,

AND I RUN HARDER FOR THEM.

I KNOW THEY WOULD DO THE SAME FOR ME. 

~ Anonymous

Running -- How it all started

It started in 1997 when I signed up for my high school cross-country team because a friend was doing it -- yes, I fell to the peer pressure.  Prior to joining the team I was never into sports because I was always intimidated by my peers and secondly, I have never been the most coordinated person.  Like I was told when I was younger, "You have the coordination of a duck." Given this amazing gift participating in school athletics was clearly never at the top of my list for good reason.  Regardless of my extreme fright and intimidation I sucked it up and became a member of the Statesville Greyhound Cross-Country Team.  Little did I know what I was getting myself into and the wonderful running accomplishments I would achieve in the coming years.