Nava Health and Vitality Center offered me an opportunity to try their intake services and compensated me for this post. A few weeks ago, I headed over to the Nava Health and Vitality Center to meet with one of their staff and get blood drawn for a variety of tests. The experience as a whole was awesome and I couldn't wait to hear what the tests actually showed. Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to find out. Once again, the process went smoothly and quickly, without feeling at all like I was being rushed. I only waited a few minutes each time in their lobby, which I spent checking out their books and supplements. (There are actually a couple of books I've added to my reading list now.) For this visit, I met with a … [Read more...]
TOTR: Running free for all
All of us over at Tuesdays on the Run have a little bit of crazy going on in our lives right now, so we decided to make this week be a "free topic" week. So write about any running related topic and link up with April, Patty, and me this week. Real topics resume next week: August 11: Fall Race Schedule August 18: Running Role Models/Runners You Admire August 25: Running Bras I'm packing like a crazy woman (the boys and I are leaving Beer Geek here and heading to Wisconsin). I've also been busy attempting to evict a squirrel from my attic. OK, actually, we did evict him, but he (or probably more accurately she) would like back in and has spent the last two days chewing. Me? I spent the day squirting her with the water hose … [Read more...]
Thinking out Loud: Where do I go from here?
You knew it was coming, right? I've finished my major goals for the first half of the year and apparently I'm feeling blasé about the fact that I have 6 half marathons in 6 days in 6 states in September. Eh, what's another state when I've already done 5 in 5 two times? Ahem. I'm joining Amanda from Running with Spoons again for some thinking out loud. I apologize in advance for the minimal pictures and maximum stream of consciousness. So, if you are my friend on Facebook or like my Facebook page, you've heard whispers of a potential new goal. Yes, the word "Ultra" has been thrown around a few times. … [Read more...]
TOTR: Weight loss or maintenance during distance training
Welcome to Tuesdays on the Run!! Thanks for joining Patty, April, and me while we talk about weight loss/maintenance while running long distances. I'm gonna be honest here - I don't have all the answers. I'm not even sure I have some of the answers. Fact: I gained weight when I trained for both previous marathons and I gained weight each time I trained for 5 half marathons in 5 days. I haven't actually gained any weight in this training session, but I'm pretty sure that's because I had already gained it all in my last training cycle. Yeah. That. And no, it's not all muscle weight gain. There's definitely more "fluff" on my body right now. I can feel it anytime I put on regular clothes. (OK, that's easy to solve. Stop wearing … [Read more...]
21 Day Reset and Pure Barre
From September 8-September 28, I participated in Laura Peifer's 21 Day Reset. She offered me the opportunity to participate for free in exchange for discussing my experience on my blog. In addition to the food reset that I did with her, I signed up for the unlimited package at the local Pure Barre studio. Because I was "attacking" from two fronts, I'm not sure which program caused every change, but I know I benefited from the combination. The 21 Day challenge included: A whole foods challenge to cleanse your body, mind and spirit New, seasonal meal plans to energize and lighten you, while releasing stored toxins Learning the 6 foods that can mess with your metabolism Group support and tips to keep you motivated and … [Read more...]
Metabolic Effect Update
I hate calling it a diet. I know that the primary meaning is "the kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats," but it seems to more often than not "diet" refers to a strict eating plan designed to bring about weight loss (or some other physical change). So far, the Metabolic Effect Diet is more the first for me than the second. First, I've always done better with frequent meals. It keeps my blood sugar much more even and I don't feel the need to snack nearly as often. Second, I don't feel like any food is restricted. I can't eat as much as some things that I might have in the past (cookies, "junk" food, etc.), but if I want a few bites, I can have them. The key here is to only have a few bites. And it's … [Read more...]
Glad that’s over…
The sugar detox, that is. I didn't have any of the physical withdrawal symptoms that some people had: no headaches or crankiness or anything like that. I just found myself constantly on the prowl for food. Some of that would have happened anyways (thank you, hormones, for making my life awesome. Not.) But a big piece of it was the feeling of deprivation that led me to eat way too many nuts and quite a bit more fruit than usual. From an "I did it!" stand point, I succeeded. I ate no sweets all week. I even cut way back on my processed foods, only having a couple of pieces of bread. I drank one beer (and I never planned to cut out alcohol, so I don't feel bad about that LOL). Everything else fell into "clean, whole foods." So, yay … [Read more...]
Three Things Thursday: Home again, blog migration issues, and a winner
1. We are home. We flew home yesterday on a near perfect flight. I got on the scale this morning and found I'd only gained a little over a pound while I was gone. I always gain a little bit at my parents' house, in part because I'll join my dad for a beer occasionally and I might have ice cream a few times. But you know why I think I always gain a bit? Ranch versus colonial. Their house is a ranch and even though the kids and I sleep in the finished basement, I'm not up and down the stairs nearly as much. I've been up for 45 minutes and I've already been down to my basement pantry four times and run back up to the upstairs twice. Proof that the little movements add up. 2. My blog migration was a big headache, but the final … [Read more...]
Bad habits
It always amazes me how easy it is to make bad habits a part of your life, but how difficult it is sometimes to make healthy choices a habit.I used to run at least once every weekend. I used to do strength training of some sort every time I went to the gym. I used to brush my teeth every night when I got Shoo ready for bed, which meant I stopped eating around 7:30pm most nights. I used to eat every couple of hours because that keeps me from getting so hungry that I make poor food choices.This weekend I realized just how far I've slipped over the last few months. I got out of the *habit* of weekend exercise when I couldn't run. As our weekends have gotten busier, I've gotten out of the *habit* of eating small, … [Read more...]
