Cross-training

Today, I decided to do a bit of cross-training to see if I could work out some of the soreness in my quads and it worked!  I went to the rec center at work and did 28 minutes on the elliptical as well as some strength training.  I did leg presses and extensions and lifted free weights for a bit.  I must say, this afternoon my quads felt much better, so hurrah to cross-training.

I have been trying desperately to eat better this week by cutting back on soda and eating more nutritionally sound food. I have been doing great at work, but my problem is at night.  I come home from work and I am ravenous.  I want to eat everything in sight!  It's a little annoying, but I'll get through it.

A co-worker introduced me to a new granola bar last week and I am obsessed with it!  It is the Nature Valley Chocolate Pretzel Nut Sweet & Salty bar.  Oh. my. yum.  It has been my late-morning/pre-workout snack and it is fabulous.  I think I will buy two boxes next week; one for work and one for home, so that maybe I can curb my after-work hunger with a delicious granola bar.

Chocolate + pretzels + nuts = amazing!

 The other thing that I picked up at the grocery store on Sunday was a box of individual drink mix packets to help curb my soda drinking.  I love water, but by mid-day, I am usually about two Tervis cups full of water and thirsty for something different, which is why I usually end up getting a soda.  Well, that and there are so many convenient places right by my office to get soda.  At lunch, I have been drinking a big glass of fruit punch and it hits the spot.  I switch back to water after lunch, but having a glass of fruit punch is a nice, mid-day change from water and it's only 5 calories per serving.

My go-to favorite flavor

 For the past few weeks, I've noticed a new product in the dairy section called Saute Express by Land O'Lakes and we gave it a try tonight.  It is a saute starter containing butter, spices, and, in most cases, olive oil, so you just add 1 square of the product for each 1/2 lb. of fish, poultry, or veggies and your meal is made.  I  picked up the garlic and herb flavor and we loved it!  It was very easy to make and the flavor was superb.  We will definitely keep this in the mix and hopefully try out a few more flavors, too, like Lemon Pepper and Italian Herb.  It may not be the healthiest option given the butter content, but we eat a lot of chicken in our house, so it is nice to have other recipes and flavors to use in our regular meal rotation.

Two thumbs up from our house

I wanted to share a few other things tonight, too.  The first is an incredible blog post by Martha at http://optifastmom.wordpress.com/.  Yesterday, Martha celebrated one year of streaking; running streaking, that is! Martha has run at least a mile, every day for the past year, which really blows my mind.  It is so easy to get caught up in the daily grind, particularly with kids, so I really admire Martha's determination and commitment.  What started out as a month-long challenge evolved into so much more and I hope you hop over to Martha's blog to read more about it!

On Facebook today, several of the groups I follow posted a tragic story of a fellow runner who was stuck and killed by a drunk driver yesterday morning while out on a run.  This Saturday, her family and friends are encouraging anyone to walk or run in Meg's honor to "raise awareness of drunk driving, texting and driving, and overall safety of runners and cyclists everywhere."  This quote from the Megs Miles Facebook page says it all.

"This Saturday, January 18, 2014, no matter what your distance, no matter where you live, run for Meg. Take in the fresh air, be aware of your surroundings, keep your headphones on low, feel the heaviness in your lungs, the soreness in your legs, and be grateful for it--for all of it. The sweat, the pain, the wind, the cold...everything. Be grateful for that moment."

While I didn't know her, Meg's story has impacted me greatly and I will be proud to dedicate my training run this Saturday to her memory.  For more information on Meg's story and the Megs Miles event, please go to the Megs Miles Facebook page. 

Please be safe out there when you run, my friends!  

I think tomorrow will be a rest day for me.  My next training run calls for 4 (!) miles and it is intimidating me a bit.  I'm not sure why, considering I know I can run 4 miles, so I need to change my outlook and think positive thoughts!

"She turned her cant's into cans and her dreams into plans."