First off, a huge congrats to anyone who raced this past week. I always want to make a BIG shout-out to all the Jacksonville, FL athletes who raced!! We have a super fast, strong and competitive group here in Jacksonville and with several podium finishes at NOLA 70.3 and several other notable accomplishments among athletes in the past few months of racing, I am so lucky to be part of such a BIG running and triathlon community here in Jacksonville. Way to go Jax athletes!!!
Well, it took 3 full day but I can finally roll my quads on the foam roller without screaming...too loud :) My piriformis (aka - butt) has been rolled with my TP massage ball at least 2-3 times a day (morning, late afternoon/early evening, before bed) to prevent any residual tightness/restrictions in my glutes. As for the rest of my recovery - loving it all besides not being able to walk down stairs at the hospital on Mon. Ok - maybe I did oddly love that a little bit. Monday was a day off as my main focus was on sleep which is always hard after a race. I was tossing and turning all night, too exhausted to fall asleep and then waking up every few hours during the night. By 4:15am I had enough and came downstairs to do some computer work. Campy has enjoyed his slow walks but he is craving a run, just like his mommy. But, we both know not to rush this process for I wouldn't gain anything out of a run right now and I will continue to respect my body as it heals and grows stronger. For I can do other things with my sore body, so to speed up the healing process, I swam 3000 yrds nice and easy on Tues (which I was more sore Tues than Mon) and on Wed, I did a few light hip exercises to loosen me up at the Y and followed that with a 4000 yrd swim (typically Wed yardage for me). Thursday - finally back on my bike as I have missed it so very much. This week is all about unstructured exercise - not "training". Just keep the body moving whether it is swim and bike or elliptical and walking. I will see how my body feels this weekend for my legs may want to run on Sat or Sun. Starting Monday....5 weeks until the Rock n RollMan Half Ironman in Macon, GA. This will be my third year racing this incredibly challenging and hot course and I will be racing in the Elite wave....certainly out of my comfort zone but that's racing.
I can't get enough of this little guy.....is it possible to have too many pics of Campy??
Dinner on Monday night.....YUM-O!
Tempeh Buitoni shells (Karel loves these) Broccoli Black beans (canned - rinsed and drained) Green pepper Artichokes (jar - rinsed and drained) Garlic Onions Sunflower oil
1. Cook tempeh in sunflower oil until slightly golden brown, on medium heat.
2. Add cooked broccoli, green pepper, artichokes, onions and chopped garlic.
3. Cook beans until soft (1-2 minutes in microwave)
4. Assemble plate - eat up!
Here is a great video that was captured during my last Oakley Women product testing trip, in Laguna Beach.
And another great one on Oakley O form.....if you are an athlete, your choice of clothing is super important!
If you are in town, I'll be speaking at the upcoming Hammer Head Triathlon Club meeting on May 2nd (Wed) at 6:15pm at the Trek Bicycle Store (San Jose Location) - Check out my website, under the Recent News and Events section for the flyer. I have SO many raffle items (Oakley, 110%, CEP, Hammer) it is necessary that you come if you want to have a chance to win some amazing products from some of my favorite companies!
I am so lucky to be in a profession where I can help people reach goals. It motivates me to "practice what I preach" but also to live a life that may inspire others. Over the past year, I have embraced the topics of intuitive and mindful eating. Particularly, have I learned a lot from my mentors at Preferred Nutrition, who specialize in a treating individuals with eating disorders, by using a team approach along side motivational interviewing. As a Registered Dietitian, I am required to keep up with my CEU's and in doing that, I enjoy watching webinars whenever possible. I try to find topics that are semi-familiar to me, that I can relate to or that I feel will help others. The past two webinars were incredible. The first one was on Intuitive eating and the second one was on Intuitive eating for diabetics. Absolutely life-changing - that is, if you want to try something so simple, that may change your life. Although I say simple, we all know that changing habits is hard. But it is strange that when you live a balanced life all while keeping a healthy relationship with food, exercise and the body, it feels good....almost un-natural considering that many people feel as if hunger, low blood sugar, fatigue, extreme soreness and pain (in any form) are expected when reaching body composition or performance goals. Um....I don't think so! How about feeling energized, healthy, happy and balanced with a new way of living life. In the last webinar, the presenter said something so incredible that will stick with me forever "It's OK to feel hungry. The idea is that when you finish eating, you should feel better than when you started." Those words are so beautiful, especially for those who commonly say "I shouldn't have eaten all that, I shouldn't have eaten that, I feel so full, I feel so bad now, I really messed up...." It's not about being perfect, make some progress with what you are doing by associating that "feeling" after you eat to the desire and want to change how you eat and most importantly, how you plan your meals and snacks to maintain stable blood sugar (eat when you are hungry or to prevent a dip in blood sugar) and to fuel and recover from activity (never neglect sport nutrition in order to control calories!). I invite you to check out these 10 principles on intuitive eating.
And lastly, I had the opportunity to contribute an article on the 110% Play Harder blog....feel free to check it out HERE as well as several other good reads.