Indulgent Celebratory Week

Hello hello hello! How was everyone's weekend? Mine was special and awesome, but highly indulgent. Let's start with the good, though, mk?

Last week's marathon training went well! I got in a nice HIIT workout on Tuesday, 8 on Wednesday, 7.88 on Thursday, 6 on Friday, and 15 on Saturday. I felt great throughout all of the miles and although I was short of my mileage goal by 2 miles, I am okay with it.

The second time we ever hung out. Can't believe this is 5+ years ago!
Also, that's totally a temporary tattoo lol. 

Why was I short by 2 miles? Well, this weekend was special because we celebrated two things: John turning 25 and our 5 year anniversary. What did this mean? This meant lots of celebrating and indulging. We had friends over Saturday night to celebrate the birthday boy. We ended up doing a Pub Golf game, which required a few too many drinks, which then led to late night pizza and a wicked hangover the Sunday AM. Then, per John's request, his birthday dinner was BBQ ribs, mac & cheese, baked beans, asparagus, and a Lemon Meringue Pie. Um, there's one thing on that list that's healthy and we had the least of that item.

Us at a PSP formal a few years back 

What does that mean for the EatClean30 challenge? Well, it just means I didn't have a 100% success rate, but that wasn't expected. I felt mentally and physically gross for having eaten that way, which I guess is a good sign that eating that way doesn't feel good. I did a good job yesterday of eating pretty cleanly and just have to remember that eating better makes me feel better and fuels my running better. Lesson learned!

My Pub Golf team...not all of us survived

Hope everyone had a great weekend! Anyone do anything fun or special? 

Eat Clean Update and Marathon Training

I'm alive, I promise. The last week or so at work has been really busy and stressful, so I haven't really felt like coming home to get back in front of a computer again (okay, I lie; I come home and surf Pinterest all night, but that requires no brain activity where writing a blog post does).

In my last post, I talked about how I was doing RunToTheFinish's "Eat Clean 30" Challenge. In essence, through the challenge, I'm trying to eat less processed foods, choose healthier options for snacking, and create healthy eating habits that will last longer than the challenge. How have I done? I would say surprisingly well, actually. While I have had a few alcoholic drinks during the challenge (usually a no-no in clean eating) and I have had a few things that may not be considered clean, I've kept to the challenge about 90-95% of the time. The biggest change is instead of eating the 100 calorie packs or candies at work, I'm choosing nuts, fruit, or mini-meals for snacks. I've actually found that my meals, which I aim to have full of fiber, fat, and protein, are keeping me fuller for longer, therefore I'm not snacking as much. I also am doing a better job of listening to my body to see if I'm actually hungry or just bored. Loving this challenge so far!

Homemade salad for lunches during the challenge 

I also am in the midst of marathon training. I will definitely be doing the Philadelphia Marathon, which is just 14 weeks away, and am registered for the Marine Corps Marathon (also have a wedding that weekend, so John and I have to figure out what we're doing). Last week was a great week for training. My Tuesday mornings have turned into short, quick, bodyweight workouts (pushups, squats, planks, etc.) and I run Wednesdays-Sundays. I got in a lot of good and speedy runs this past week, including a 13.1 mile long run with the first 7.25 at sub-goal marathon pace. I know I'm not as fast as I was this time last year, but I also didn't run 100 miler last year. I'm at peace with my pace, but know that I can do a lot of improving in the next couple of months. Overall, I'm just really excited for marathon training and my races this fall!

And just because it's awesome, here's a picture of a tomato we got last week in our CSA share. It's a monster!

Have a great week, everyone!

New running partner, marathon training, and eating clean

How is it Wednesday already?! This week has flown by, but I'm not really complaining.

The past week or so has really gotten back into my normal swing of things in terms of exercise! I went to all of the Back on My Feet (BoMF) runs that I normally go to and actually have a new person to run with: John! For the nearly 5 years that we've dated, he has always said that running has been something he wouldn't want to do because "it's boring." I never pushed him on it because I love running and sometimes struggle to push myself to run, so it wouldn't make sense to push it with him.

One of the only times we've run together in the past

A few weeks ago, he said he might want to come with me to my runs with BoMF because he felt he needed a routine to actually exercise. I was so giddy and excited, but again, didn't get my hopes up too much since I knew he could easily change his mind. For the past two weeks, though, he's come to the runs and actually gotten me to come to days I normally skip. I feel like I might be jinxing it putting it up on here, but I've really loved running with him, especially since he's gotten to know my BoMF friends. I hope this can keep up because so far, I've been loving running with him!

I also have started to consider my fall marathon training plan. I am running the Marine Corps Marathon and Philadelphia Marathon, so I need to start training soon! I know I'm not as fast as I normally am around this time of year due to my 100 miler, but I think I can improve my pace soon. I am going to be using the Pfitzinger 12 week/55 miles per week plan. I'm worried about the speed work, but I am eager to race and more importantly, figure out what costumes to run them in!

From RTTF's blog

In terms of eating for this month, I'm participating in RunToTheFinish's 30 Day Eat Clean Challenge. What will that mean for me? I'll do my best to:

• Avoid processed foods/sugary treats - Better stated CHOOSE whole foods
• Consume healthy fats - avocados, fish, nuts, oils
• Drink water, water, water
• Choose organic or humanely raised animal products as much as possible
• Slow down and savor - Food is to be enjoyed!

I am really excited for this! I think I eat too many processed foods and tons of white starches that I don't need. I also rush through my meals a lot because I'm starving for my meals a lot of the time. What I like the most about it is that this isn't a crash or fad diet; it's how I feel I should be eating all of the time. I feel following the challenge will give me more strength to say 'no' to unhealthy snacks. I'll keep you all updated with how it goes throughout the month!