Week One Day Six: Stitch

So much for blogging everyday but I thought I should update my progress now:
Monday: 7.5k Run & Gym
Tuesday: 3k Run & Gym
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: 5k Run & Gym & Abs+Arms Class
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 6k Run
And hopefully Sunday after work I will use the cross trainer, I am aiming for 10k on the cross trainer tomorrow.

All of the runs at the beginning of week went quite well, I was full of motivation after my longest ever run on Monday.Today, I on my schedule was 5k but I knew that I wouldn't be going to the gym today. I'd decided to just use the cross trainer instead because my legs felt a little bit stiff but I wasn't really sure why as I hadn't ran since Thursday and then my brother asked if I wanted to go out for a run and before I changed my mind I decided I'd go. We planned to try and do at least 5k but would see how it went.

I did 6km and was quite pleased as I didn't really think I'd go out for a run, plus the weather was lovely!
I had mixed feelings about the run, I realised just before I went out that I'd had nothing to eat and knew I couldn't run on empty so I grabbed a small wholemeal roll and of course I got AWFUL stitch for most of the run! I was annoyed because I had to stop at one point and didn't really run very fast but then I was pleased I went out at all!

Previously for lent I have given up bread and chocolate, this year I have given up crisps (because I eat them for the sake of it, because they are easy to grab and eat without any value really and they are high in calories), biscuits (basically for the same reasons as the crisps) and white things, like white bread, pitta breads, pasta, rice etc I know its only been 4 days but so far it is going ok, I think as long as I am prepared and organised with snacks I won't need crisps and I don't really eat loads of biscuits and I prefer wholemeal pasta, rice and pitta breads anyway!

I hope anyone has given things up for lent is doing well! And spring marathon training is going well!

Oh, I almost forgot, when I got home from my run today I had a letter for my 10k including my race number and chip, it all seems very serious so I think I better get seriously training for it, I think everyone is going to be really professional! I don't know the route but I have found it on the internet so I am going to drive to find at and I'm going to walk it once so I know where I'm going and then start running it so I know inclines etc

Love x

Week One Day One: Longest Run!

It's time to get back on track, last week I only ran once and the week before only twice and I feel like time is slipping away quite quickly and before I know it it will be May!

A couple of weeks back I designed a 12 week 10k plan but didn't start it. I changed it to an 11 week plan today and started it.

Despite waking up full of cold with a really bad throat and a banging headache, I knew I had to go to the gym today otherwise it would be another unmotivated week and I really can't afford it. When I'm not exercising I'm not eating well either! 

On my schedule for today was: 

2KM EASY, THEN 4 X 500M FASTER, WITH 500M JOG RECOVERIES, THEN 2KM EASY = 8KM 

I knew that 8km was quite a lot for me, so I went into the gym thinking I'd do the 2km easy, 2 x 500m faster and 2x 500m jog recoveries and 1km easy, totaling 5km.

Whilst I am running I am constantly changing how far I'm going to run, where I'm going to run, when I am going to slow down, how fast I am going to go etc.

So of course I changed my 'route'.

I did the 2km easy

the 4 x 500m faster and 500m jog recoveries (with a bit of walking) and then 1km easy with a 500m cool down, equaling 7.5km

THE LONGEST I HAVE EVER RUN! 

And yes it took just under an hour because of the walking, and yes I was red hot afterwards but it really wasn't as hard as I thought! 

I was very pleased that I have got a lot closer to the 10km mark, and I didn't nearly die! The treadmill does cut out at 1 hour though so for now, I am going to aim to get 8km under the hour mark at first when I'm doing a long run. My personal best for 5km is 29 mins, so I'm hoping to get a sub 1 hour 10km. For now I need to try and get my 5k on the treadmill at 30 mins because at the moment it is usually about 39 minutes. It has always been longer on the treadmill though, I think it's because of the atmosphere of a race or a run.

Tomorrow is planned as an easy 2km run and a rest day on Wednesday but I may increase this to 5km depending on how my legs feel tomorrow. 

I will keep you updated (hopefully daily) on how I am progressing, how far I'm running and what I am doing for my cross training activities!

Love x

Horrific Hangover = No Run

I have taken it easy this week with the running so I don't put too much strain on my knee, actually I've taken it easy with all exercise and any form of healthy eating! I was planning to run 2 or 3k on Thursday morning after a class focusing on abs and arms, I got into the gym still planning to do 2k, I got to 2 and decided to do 3, I went over 3 so decided to do 3.5, then I remembered if I ran 4.4km I would have got to 100km since I starting running on 09/01 so I thought I may as well do 5km! I didn't really look at the time, I know it wasn't fast (it never is on the treadmill) but I definitely ran more than I usually do, I tried to keep the pace at 8km/h, a steady jog really, I did slow down a couple of times but sped up slightly too, I think my average pace was 7.7km/h overall.

Friday was a rest day as I'm at uni all day and then I was planning to go for a run (as long as possible) on Saturday, but due to a vile hangover I did NOTHING all day! So really looking forward to running tomorroww!

Love x

I finally ran again for the first time on Monday, 0.7km because I nearly fell over on the ice!
So Tuesday I went for a 2km run, which ended up being 3km so I was pleased.
Wednesday was my rest day and fingers crossed tomorrow I will do 4km, rest on Friday and then run on Saturday.
I will be starting a 10k training plan on Monday and I am using this week to ease myself into running.

Still no weigh in but I know I have put on weight because I have been eating a lot, I just hope I haven't erased all of my hard work!

Love
x

Starting Off Slowly

I have not run since the 26th Jan! And even though I am back at Uni and have other things to concentrate I feel like something is missing! My knee feels much better than it was before so I'm going to run again tomorrow.
I am going to start off slowly and build it up very slowly, no more than a 10% increase each week! There is 12 weeks on Wednesday until my 10k so I am going to come up with a 12 week training plan and start it on Thursday I think.
My plan is to run on Monday, Thursday and Saturday I think this week, maybe just do a little bit on Tuesday depending on the time I have.
I plan to do 12k this week and then hopefully a 5k on Saturday but I may postpone it until next Saturday because I have not been training!

This week at the gym has been a bit of a fail, I only actually went up to the gym once so I plan to be better next week! I'm sure once I'm running again I will have much more motivation to exercise more and eat better! As I have not been eating brilliantly either! I was away for my weekly weigh in last week so it will have to wait until next week now!

I am to have run 100km by the end of February, which gives me 3 weeks to run 21km, which I think even taking it easy, is possible!

Fingers crossed!

I ran 79km in January so 21km in February is do able!

I am a bit disappointed that Janathon is over, because people aren't blogging as much and I love reading other people's blogs for inspiration! I'd love to be like some of you guys one day!

Love x

10 Reasons To Love The Treadmill!

"10 Reasons To Love The Treadmill"

I saw this title of an article on the internet a couple of weeks ago (can’t remember if it was RunnersWord or The Running Blog). I didn’t read the article but decided to see if I could come up with my own reasons to love treadmills, especially as I mainly use treadmills for training rather than running outside. Here goes:

Run anytime:  When you have a treadmill at home or a gym membership you can run whenever you want to!Whether you’re an early bird or a night owl there is an ideal time for you! Personally, I don’t feel safe running in the dark, you never know who is around, and I know my parents wouldn’t want me running around the dark streets near my house alone! With a treadmill you can run late at night if that is what you prefer without the added danger.

Climate control: no debating whether to run in the rain, whether to slip over on the ice or brave the gorgeous sunshine to sweat to death. With a treadmill you can just go and run, if it is warm turn on the air con, if it’s cooler, don’t. I give you the power to control the weather for your run ;)

Distractions: Other things apart from your ability and current mood can play havoc with your time! Aiming for a personal best? I don’t think so, not with slow people blocking the pavements, cars parked up on the curb and people riding bikes on the pavement. I understand other people have just as much of a right to be walking on the pavements as we do running on them but on the treadmill it’s just you, yourself and the open machine!

No carrying a water bottle, phone, iPod, keys etc: you can throw everything in a locker and your phone/iPod and water in the water bottle holder on the treadmill! I find it awkward when I go out for a run if I want to take my phone (safety) my Ipod, a bottle of water and my keys to get back in my house. And I always worry about things falling out of my pockets and losing them, especially my keys.

No having to ditch layers during your run: so it’s freezing outside, and in order to brave the cold you need running tights, top, jumper, coat, gloves and a hat! But 10 minutes in, you’re sweating, what do you do with your layers? You can’t not wear them at all can you? Or put them in a locker? With a treadmill you can, you can run in your PJ’s if you wish, only at home though, not at the gym!

Speed: if you have a pace target it can be difficult to stick to this, or even exceed it if you don’t know the pace you are running, a treadmill can set your pace and you can always see it in front of you, adjusting it up or down accordingly.

Incline: Easier to do hill training whenever you want: finding an outdoor hill is not a challenge for me, I live surrounded by hills! But for some it can be difficult! Want to do a 2k run up a steep hill for training? Go for it, it’s easy on a treadmill, just incline it!

Entertainment value: as amazing as the views can be on an outdoor run can be, and I’m not disputing this(!) sometimes all you see is grey pavement, grey sky and boring houses. Why not watch your favourite TV programme? That film you never got to see in the cinema that’s on the TV and you’d miss if you were out for a run? It’s called multitasking! Watch TV or a film whilst you run and sometimes the view may be better, plus the time can fly by!

Distance: Using a treadmill you can set an exact distance you want to run (if you want to be precise) rather than running around the block 3 and a half times until you get to the 5k you’d planned.

Unwanted substances: In the gym and on the treadmill (hopefully) there is no dog poo, which I have seen a lot of on the pavements running outdoors; is it so hard to pick it up? Surely if you have a dog and take it out for a walk, you have the responsibility of clearing up after it? Sorry rant over. Also unexpected pot holes and uneven pavements aren’t good for your ankles! 

So there is my 10 reasons to love the treadmill, I could probably come up with more but they would start to get silly! 

I haven't blogged in a few days because I've not really had much to say, I have not been running and although I'm new to it, I really don't like it! Friday I went to the Ab Box class but didn't go in the gym afterwards. I wasn't going to run I was going to use the cross trainer but after doing squats, squat jumps and star jumps I thought it was best to leave my knees. Because I can only feel my knees hurting whilst I am running I went for a walk on Saturday. A nice brisk (but cold) walk, and it turns out at 5.85k it could be decent running route if made up slightly to 6k. There are a few hills, both up and down so would be good to up my outdoor distance when running again.

Today I had planned to go to the gym and to try and run and if not go on the cross trainer. Then I looked out the window and it was freezing! I thought it was pointless driving to the gym to just use the cross trainer when I have a cross trainer at home. I planned to do an hour on the cross trainer today because I know the distance on my cross trainer goes up fast and it doesn't seem to burn many calories. 

I completed 50 minutes on the cross trainer, covering 19km and burning 430 calories. To be honest, I don't know why I didn't either round it up to an hour or 20km. The programme I was watching on iPlayer went off so I stopped, silly really.

I am going away tomorrow for a couple of days so I won't be in the gym but hopefully I will be doing some walking. BUT I was also probably be eating awfully for 2 days so a lengthy gym session is needed on Thursday. This week is not going to be a good week for either food or exercise but we all have our setbacks. I will try my best and not deliberately pig out and will get back to it on Monday. Hopefully by Monday I will be able to run again and I can carry on training. I will only increase my distance slowly this time as I think I did too much too soon before.

Anyway I am off to bed with a hot chocolate as I'm finally back to Uni tomorrow and then off for a lovely trip away. Sorry for the long post and I'll update you all when I'm back on Thursday.

Love and happy running!

X

Words, Words, Words.

Disappointed.
Annoyed.

Aggravated.

Upset.

Frustrated.

Let Down.

Disheartened.

My current feelings with my running after another failed attempt at 5k due to bad knees.

Time for rest!

Love x

Wiggling Wednesday

Just a quick update of my Wednesday Weigh In, and my exercise for today. As I've said in previous posts (here) I work on a Wednesday night so usually spend the morning doing nothing and the afternoon with my boyfriend. Last week I went for an (outdoor) run and this week I went to Dance Aerobics, an Abs Class and then a quick half an hour in the gym! The instructor for the dance aerobics just kept telling us to wiggle, which most certainly made me and my friend laugh and laughing is good exercise right? I burnt 619 calories which is a good effort for a 'lazy Wednesday'.

I ran 2.7k in the gym to make my km's at a nice round number and I aim to run 5 or 6 tomorrow (depending on how I feel and how my knee's feel!) They felt fine today so hopefully it was just a blip!

After my Wednesday weigh day, I have lost one more pound. At first I was disappointed but I soon realised it is healthy to lose one pound a week, if I was losing much more than this, especially as its week 3 and I am building muscle. As I don't have a lot of weight to lose, this is a good result. In 3 weeks I have lost 5 pounds, 5 pounds out of the 13 I aim to lose. Hopefully I can stay on track!

Love x

[Insert Good Title Here]

The last 24 have been a whirlwind (more like a breeze really) of emotions. My Sunday post showed my optimism and excitement for the week ahead, especially in regards to training and running. I was still full of this enthusiasm until about 7 o clock last night when I got to the gym, as soon as I pulled on the car park I knew it would be very busy, but not quite as busy as I expected. I thought 'ah well I have new shoes' and looked down at my new shoes which I purchased earlier that day! 

I was hoping all the 'newyearsresolutioners' would have disappeared by now but by the looks of it Monday night is the best night to go. There were people waiting, almost queing, for all the machines and I just wanted to turn around and walk out but I had a 5k planned so I thought I better get on with it, when I could get on a treadmill anyway. The only machine free was the wave machine (which looks  like this!)

 I jumped on that and kept my eye open for a treadmill to become free. After about 10/15 minutes one finally did! I started with a brisk walk on the treadmill and decided to run. All of a sudden BAM! a pain in my knees that I've never felt before and not just one of my knees both of them! I couldn't understand why! I've had 2 rest days (Saturday and Sunday) where I did no exercise, although this was more due to the inability to walk down the stairs and not by choice! I managed a 3k walk/run but had to give up after that! I felt awful because I had 5k planned but was slightly consolidated by the fact that I'd been for a 3.3k walk earlier in the day!

I did a few 5 minute little exercises on the bike and the arm machine but decided it was time to go home, have a hot chocolate and feel sorry for myself, and I most certainly enjoyed my hazelnut hot chocolate in my pj's! I felt totally and utterly drained when I got home so around 10 o clock I went to bed, but was wide awake with a niggling feeling that something was wrong, like I'd failed myself. This may sound really stupid now, but it's what I felt at the time. I know its not the end of the world that I dropped 2k, especially since my 10k isn't until May.

On a more positive not I have decided a date for my first parkrun and I'm planning to do one once a month to give me some more incentive! I will (definitely) be completing a parkrun on the 11th February. Which gives me 2 and a half weeks.I will be back at uni by the so won't be able to train on a Friday so that will give me a good rest day before the race.

So yesterday I bought new running shoes and planned my first parkrun, which put me in a more positive mood for today's gym session, and I was just hoping my knees felt ok! I had some motivation but not a whole lot, I just felt a little deflated to be honest! I started running today and could feel my knees so I decided to run less distance and try and do a few sprints(ish). I ran on 10.5km/h for one minute and walked for one minutes. Once I'd gotten in to the running my knees felt fine so I ran until 5k. It was a lot easier running faster than I thought it would be. I'm not measuring my time at the moment, just trying to get the distances done. Despite A LOT of walking, I did the 5k in 40.19 minutes and burnt 352 calories.

With my poor workout yesterday, maybe not too poor, I think I'm just being to hard on myself, I burtn 458 calories. I did more today and felt like I had a better workout and burnt 674 calories. So I'm in a much better mood today and can't wait to watch the Biggest Loser later.
I have 2 classes booked at the gym for this week but may go to 3. I have completed 11.6km of my planned 22km's so I'm easily on track to get this, and maybe even beat it! We'll have to see how my legs and knees hold up!

It's weigh day tomorrow so I'll keep you updated on my weight loss progress too!

Love x

Sunday Summary

So it's Sunday, the start of a fresh new week tomorrow! I am finding that I am excited when Monday rolls around because I have a new food plan and a new distance target for my running! I have been kindly and rightly advised to listen to my body, so the last two days have been rest days. After running and exercising 5 days in a row I think I needed it! I feel much better and much more refreshed and I am raring to go tomorrow! I think rethought my distance plan and my aim is to now increase my distance by 10% each week and take at least 2 rest days a week.I want to be prepared for my 10k not injured.

My legs are feeling much better but my abs are still pretty achy so I think just running is on the agenda tomorrow (5k target). I have been having a few problems with my one too (ingrowing toe nail maybe? does anyone else have this problem?) but after a long soak in the bath and some Germolene, it is feeling much better and hopefully will be ok tomorrow, if not I may be off to the doctors!

This week I have ran 21km, exceeding my target of 20km and have burnt 3901 calories through just exercise.

Weigh In:
09/01: 9st 10
11/01: 9st 9
18/01: 9st 6
Weight lost: 4lbs 


Total distance to date: 39km <-- Pretty impressive (for me) in two weeks! :)

Time to go to sleep and look forward to a new week.

Love x

Achinngggg!

So after my abs and boxing class and a 4k run yesterday I am aching all over! I am struggling to walk up and down the stairs and it has been raining all day so my Saturday walk today has been postponed until next week. I really really enjoyed the ab and boxing class yesterday and because I thought it would be mainly upper body I had planned to go into the gym for a run after. We used our legs a lot more than I thought, doing ducks, squats, squat kicks and sitting on an imaginary seat against the wall (I don't know the name for this one). My whole body is aching, I felt much better once I was up dressed and popped up to the shop but there was no way I could have walked any further than the front door to the car and back again! I'm quite dissapointed in a way because I really wanted to do some form of exercise today, only a walk because I was going to have a break from running. I had run everyday this week so far, so five days in a row. This doesn't sound very impressive compared to janathon participants or anyone who has run for 100 days in a row but for me it is an achievement! I am planning to run tomorrow afternoon because I'm doing an early shift tomorrow at work, a lovely 8 til 2, so I may use the twitter inspiration to do a long Sunday run! (well long for me anyway)

Today I have done nothing, just sitting around, planning my food for next week and making some flapjack.

Oaty seedy fruity nutty healthy bites? Do you think that is catchy enough? ;) I made this recipe up myself so here it is!

Ingredients
110g Utterly Buttery or low fat spread
4 tbsps Honey
100g Oats
30g Sunflower Seeds
10g Coconut (you could leave this out as you can't really taste it!)
15g Mixed Peel
15g Mixed Fruit Mix
30g Raisins

Method

1. Put the butter and the honey into a saucepan and heat gently until the honey and butter has melted. Remove from the heat and stir in all the remaining dry ingredients.
2. Press the mixture into a greased 28cm x 18cm (11" x 7") baking tin and level the top.
3. Cook in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes at 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 until the biscuit is golden brown. Mark it into bars while it is still hot. Cool slightly, then cut into slices. Remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack.

I worked this out as for the whole thing being 1541 calories, so you can just divide this by however many pieces you cut it into. I cut mine into bite size pieces (approx 25).  This recipe may need a bit of tweaking, out of the 25 pieces I probably got around 17 that looked good, some of the others fell apart or were the edges so too crispy. More butter and honey may be needed but I wanted to keep the calorie count down.


I have been pretty good this week (apart from drinking some wine last night) so I am off for a Saturday treat, a meal out with my boyfriend. I am planning to be as good as I can but all will power may go out the window as soon as I walk in. I'll let you know.

Love x

6k run done!

As you've probably guessed I have a plan of what I want to run each day. Today my plan was 5k and a Key Toning Class at the gym. I turned up at around 12.05 and gave the receptionist my card as asked for the Key Toning class at 12.15 and she told me where to go. I could hear the music and assumed the instructor was playing the music to get everyone in the mood. I opened the door and everyone was already going for it, working their poor ab muscles on the floor with what seemed like a devil woman screaming at them. I quickly closed the door and went back to reception and said that they'd already started and I'd just use the gym instead. Admittedly, I was slightly annoyed when the receptionist said "oh yeah, I think she started at 12 cause she thought everyone was here." WHY WOULD EVERYONE BE THERE MORE THAN 15 MINUTES EARLY? Its quite a new class so I don't see why she'd do this as there wouldn't be usual regulars going or anything, and even if there were regulars, are new people not allowed to join in? Its a good job I'm a member and didn't have to pay otherwise I would have demanded a refund because to be honest, that's just unfair!

So rant over...
I went in the gym and planned to do 5k, I started on the 'wave' machine for 5 minutes to warm up and then went across to the treadmill. I actually started pretty well doing a 2 minute run 30 second walk sequence, doing some 3 minute and some 4 minute runs.I did 5k and then decided to carry on for another kilometer so I did 6k. This is the longest I've ran in one go so far! And I really enjoyed it, and I felt like I'd achieved something, and extra km was even far! I think I will either do 5k or 6k tomorrow and go for a 5k walk on Saturday. May even have chance to do a run on Sunday which I am quite looking forward to!

Stats:
Distance: 6k
Time: 47.05 mins
Calories: 432
Speed: 7.7km/h average speed

Love x

Running Round in Circles

As you may have guessed, I usually run in the gym and not outdoors; mainly because my house seems to be at the bottom of two pretty steep hills so to really get anywhere I need to run up these, but buy the time I get to the top I am shattered and want to magically appear at home again! I think I really need to get some hill training in. I was lucky with my last (and only) 5k as it was mainly flat with only a couple of very slightly gradual hills. Anywayyy.... I went out for my first outdoor run so far this year this morning and I really enjoyed it! After a bit of a stress about what to wear, its a lot milder today than it has been the last few days, I was off. I had planned a 3.5k route on MapMyRun previously and decided to do this. I had only planned to do 2k today but I was in the mood so it seemed quite pointless going out to just do 2k. I finally managed to get the GPS working on my iPod and was quite impressed with the app. It showed me where I was running, my time, my distance, my minutes per km and my current pace actually scratch that, a lovely lady TOLD me these wonderful stats! I ran slightly further than planned and ended up closer to 3.6k, I thought about running a bit further to round it up to 4k but I wasn't sure if I did the small loop by my house then it would go over the 4k mark and I'd just have to keep running in circles until it got to a round number, I would have been dizzy! I tweeted my workout and then felt bad for not having an even number so went for a quick jog around to block (500m) to make it up to 4k.

Unfortunately there are no pretty and frosty photos from my run today like others yesterday and Monday. The conditions were pretty dull, overcast sky's and damp, it must have rained in the night. It seemed pretty warm in comparison to previous days so for me and for running it was ok. The drains were damp and slippy and I nearly went flying a few times, oops, I need to watch where I'm running. Also, has anyone else noticed the amount of dog poo on the pavements? I was quite shocked, especially as every person I saw with a dog was picking it up! Might be because it is quite a residential area so no one really pays much attention. Enough talk about dog dodo....

I have planned tomorrow to go to a class called Key Toning, more like a toning class for abs and arms I think, mainly because I hate my arms and because I don't just want to get too bogged down with cardio and forget to tone my body. Hopefully it will be mainly toning and not too strenuous in cardio so I will then go into the gym and run. Planned is a 5k so I will do this and see how I feel, I may even do 6k! My planned Km's for this week is 20km. I didn't plan anything last week and I did 18 so I thought I'd slightly increase it each week. I only increased it by 2k as I didn't want to push my self too hard and thought (for me) 20km is quite a lot at the moment. I may break this target but we'll see!

With a 6.29 min/km pace I was quite pleased with this run. I have no idea what this means as the treadmill does nothing like this but I think this is faster than what I usually do on the treadmill. My idea is to do at least 1 outdoor run a week so I'll use this as a base and then try and get faster! I think its easier to keep going outside because when you're on the treadmill with people walking next to you its so easy to press to downward arrow on the speed and slow down for a little while.

I'll try take some more interesting pictures next time but for now, its time for a good nights sleep.
Love x

Early(ish) Morning Gym Session

I had plans today at around 12 o clock so instead of having a morning procrastinating after breakfast and then having a late morning, early afternoon gym session I needed to get up early and go. I wanted to be out of the house for about 9 half 9 and have a good hour/hour and a half at the gym. I woke up in the middle of the night and my legs felt stiff! I was thinking 'oh no, I'm going to feel awful in the morning and my legs are going to feel like lead!' but when I woke up they were surprisingly okay!

Last night I went to a Ladies circuits session at the gym which lasted one hour. My plan was to go to the gym before and do a 1k run and then go to the gym after and do another 1k run. Instead I did 2k before I went to the class and then went home after the class, I didn't want to go back in the gym and push myself too much so then not manage to do much all week. I really love the circuits class, I always feel like I've had a full body workout but the only trouble is, it is only on once a week and on a Monday evening. I'm not a fan of going to the gym on an evening, especially in the winter because it is busy and the car park can be a bit dodgy on an evening. And I like to get my workouts done and dusted rather than waiting around all day to leave the house in the dark and cold. I did enjoy the class and will be going again but maybe not every week!

My earlyish gym session involved a warm up on the cross trainer for 5 minutes, 5 minutes on the arm machine and 10 minutes on the wave machine and then I went onto the treadmill. I was going to try and do 5x1k runs, seeing how fast I can do them. My aim in distance for today was 5k and I did manage it, but I seemed to lack motivation and running seemed to be really hard and tiring! My calf seemed to be really pulling at 3k so decided to stop. And then I did another 2k after, just so I got my target for today.

Hopefully do a 3k tomorrow, but outdoors and see how it feels.
I'll keep you updated
Love x

Blue Monday

So apparently today is 'Blue Monday' the most depressing day of the year, but in all honestly I'm feeling pretty ok! I'm feeling motivated with my healthy eating and very motivated with my running and gym except I haven't actually been yet today. I was going to go this morning but then one of my gym buddies text me asking if I wanted to go to a circuits class tonight and one of my other friends has just joined the gym and wanted to go too. So I'm going to do that as apparently it burns around 600 calories. My gym buddy has also asked me to go swimming after the class but when the class finishes at half 8 I think it will be too late and cold! I'm going to go to the gym before the gym and do a short run and then go after the class and so another one if my legs are feeling ok.

On Saturday when I went for a walk my right calf was hurting and then yesterday, even when I did no exercise except being at work, my shins are really hurting and still are today! I thought after some rest and a good nights sleep they would be ok but they are still hurting this morning, like right above my ankles so when I move my ankles I get a bit of a shooting pain. I don't want to not to anything today, especially running, I want to get the Km's clocked up! I think I must have weak bones because to get what seems like shin splints after one week of running is pretty bad. I did do nearly 18km last week so maybe I did too much last week? I do not eat much dairy at all to be honest so I am going to try and eat more, especially yogurts and milk, in hope that my bones with strengthen a bit. I really don't want to have to have time off from running injured because even though my 10k is just over 15 weeks away I want to be more than ready than it!

I think I will try and do 2 lots of 2k tonight, or 2 lots of 1k depending on how my legs feel but try and increase my pace slightly. I know I need to increase distance first, I have officially signed up for my first Half Marathon, The Great Birmingham Run and my 10k application is in the process of being completed. With a 10k in May and a Half Marathon towards to end of October I have a lot to train for but a lot to be motivated towards!

I am eagerly awaiting the postman to bring my race and fundraising pack from Diabetes UK!

Any tips on avoiding injury, especially in my shins? What is everyone's 10k and HM times? Would love to know!

Love x

Frosty Under Foot

I planned to go for a run today at my local country park but my mom asked if she could come with me for a walk and I didn't want to leave her so we went for a brisk walk instead. It was so beautiful, the sun was going down and the water and the frost was glistening. Some parts of the park were fine, some really muddy and some really frosty under foot. I tried to use the Nike+ app to see how far we were walking but it just kept saying 'Walk around to start your sensor' and never actually did anything! So I tried to iMapMyFitness app instead and that too wouldn't connect, we must have had poor GPS signal. It still timed how long we were walking for and it was 44 minutes. According to the calorie counter app on my phone this burnt 224 calories. I never usually do anything on a Saturday so I was happy with this, and everything is better than something. Walking around I also came up with some good ideas for where to run so I think I might be visiting more often. I think I'll start by driving down there and running around and gradually run there and then run around as its not too far away from home.

A few photos of the gorgeous views and park not even 5 minutes drive from my house! And a sneaky picture of mine and my mom's shadow!

Walk: distance 1.8m 2.9km-224 cals  44mins

One of the worst parts of eating healthily for me is having something sweet for a snack that isn't too high in calories. I decided to adapt the Chocolate Swiss Roll recipe I previously posted to just a plain Swiss roll. Instead of 75g flour and 25g cocoa powder, I just used 80g flour and a splash of vanilla extract and filled with Diabetic jam rather than butter cream or cream. I've cut it into 9 slices and worked it out at 94 calories a slice. I know you can get snacks for less than this such as Muller light yogurts and Snack-a-Jacks etc but sometimes nothing beats a slice of cake and a cup of tea!

Here is a low carb carrot cake recipe that is lovely! I made this when I was doing low carb last year, I don't think its particularly low calorie or low fat but most of the calories and fat come from using ground almonds as opposed to flour, this decreases the carb count significantly.

Carrot Cake Recipe

FOR THE CAKE 
* 1 medium orange
* 80g chopped walnuts
* 75ml olive or vegtable oil
* 230g ground almonds
* 2 tsp baking powder , plus a pinch
* 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
* 1 rounded tsp ground cinnamon
* 40g splenda
* 170g finely grated carrots (about 200g carrots before peeling)
* 2 eggs

FOR THE FROSTING
* 100g light soft cheese , straight from the fridge
* 100g Quark
* 12g splenda
* 1 finely grated orange zest
* 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

1. Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3.
2. For the cake, finely grate the zest from the orange and squeeze 3 tbsp of juice. 
3. Pour the juice over the walnuts in a bowl, stir in zest, then leave to soak while you make the cake. 
4. Grease 2 x 8” cake tins. 
5. Mix the almonds with 2 tsp baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon.
6. Separate one of the eggs. Put the white in a small bowl and the yolk in a large one.
7. Break the remaining whole egg in with the yolk, then tip in the splenda. 
8. Whisk together for 1-2 mins until thick and foamy. 
9. Slowly pour in the oil and continue to whisk on a low speed until well mixed. 
10. Tip in the almond mix, half at a time, and gently stir it into the egg mixture with a rubber spatula or big spoon. The mix will be quite stiff.
11. Put the extra pinch of baking powder in with the egg white and whisk to soft peaks.
12. Fold the carrot, walnuts (and any liquid) into the almond mixture.
13. Gently fold in the whisked egg white, then spoon half into each tin. 
14. Jiggle the tins to level the mixture. 
15. Bake for 1 hr until risen and firm or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin 5 mins, turn out onto a wire rack, then leave until cold.

16. To make the frosting,

17. stir the soft cheese, Quark, splenda and orange zest together - don't overbeat. 
18. Stir in the lemon juice. 
19. Spread the frosting over each half & place one on top of the other. 


Total carbs for cake = 100 so divide by the number of slices. 

I never actually made the frosting for this cake as the cake was gorgeous and moist as it was and I felt it didn't need it. I did get this recipe off another website, I think it may have been a diabetes website but I can't find where I got from, when I do I'll post the link. 

I've decided if I'm going to start running outside more, which I need to, I need to get a coat. I was looking on eBay but nothing really jumped out at me so I decided to look on sportdirect and found loads of stuff I want! In my basket at the moment I have a coat, some running socks, a running t-shirt and just an addidas top, I'll let you know what I actually purchase and how I get on with it. I found a gorgeous Addidas running windproof coat that matches my bright blue running trainers for £11! I clicked on it and they had size 12,14 and 16 left, I thought well if I've got to fit a hoody underneath it then the 12 would be fine, I clicked on the 12 and it came up £21, only the size £16 was £11! Which has annoyed me, because I don't really like pink clothes and would prefer a blue coat rather than a pink one! 

Still thinking of fundraising ideas but I think I've come up with one I love, A PARTY!

Love x

Updates

I haven't blogged for a couple of days so I thought I'd give a few updates.

1) I like to weigh myself on a Wednesday so if I have had an indulgent weekend then it gives me chance to try and recover on Monday and Tuesday. So I weighed myself on Monday when I started and then re-weighed myself on Wednesday so I can weigh myself every Wednesday. From Monday to Wednesday I had lost two pounds, but I'm sure most of this is water weight and not actual fat but it gave me a boost and I was pretty happy!

2) I was planning on going shopping and then going to the gym but by I was out shopping a lot longer than planned. I didn't get home until 3 so by the time I'd had lunch I didn't fancy going, more because I know if I exercise straight after I've eaten then I'll feel sick, get stitch and give up. So instead of going to the gym I was going to use a magazine article on home exercise to do half an hour of small circuit training, apparently burning 400 calories. I did what it was in about 20 minutes and no way did I feel like I'd burnt 400 calories, more like 100! So I jumped on the cross trainer we have in our spare room, aiming to do 10k on there and did 15.5! I burnt 353 calories so I know this distance is no where near accurate but it gives me something to aim for next time I go on.
http://www.running4women.com/how-aerobic-x-training-can-boost-your-running/

Here is an article about how Cross Training can boost your running by boosting your fitness and creating a better athlete!

3) Today I did manage the motivation to go to the gym, I wanted to give the little box on the right higher numbers to show you as I'm not really running very far! I started off in the gym and did 0.7k and the treadmill stopped. Que attempt two; I got to 0.84k and decided I couldn't be bothered and wanted to use another machine. So I got off and went on the bike, then decided to round up the treadmill number to 2k (by doing 0.46k) and then going on another machine and getting back on the treadmill a-fresh and starting again by doing 3k to make my total 5k. (Read enough numbers yet?)

I used the internet to look at a couch210k plan and see what kinds of things they recommend. The first week was run 2 minutes walk 2 minutes, eight times creating a 34 minute run. I thought I'd do this but for a 5k distance and see how long it took. I stuck to it, kind of, adding the odd 15seconds to my run and the odd 5 seconds to the walking and I did the 5k in just under 39 minutes on a 1/5% incline. Running for two minutes sounds easy but after one and a half minutes I felt like I needed to slow down I kept going. Next time I go to the gym I'm going to do 2 minutes 30 seconds run and 45 seconds rest (walking) and try to increase my time running and the pace and decrease the rest time. Hopefully soon (maybe next week or the week after) I can be running 5 minutes and walking 1 minute and keep increasing so I only need a couple of rests through the 5k. And then increase my distance so that I can train more specifically for the 10k in May. I am going to sign up for that this afternoon and maybe complete my Great Birmingham Run application too!

I'm going to come up with fundraising ideas and sponsorship ideas this afternoon! Any ideas? Comment on the blog or tweet me on E_ninetytwo 


Love x

Inspire..

“It's very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not 

to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is 

against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit.” 

― George Sheehan

I loved this quote when I read it, I think it's really true! I don't think that everyone is natural runner, everyone needs some inspiration and motivation once in a while, or everyday in some case. Not everyone wants to jump out of bed put on their running shoes and go off for a run!

I don't really have much to update today, my eating hasn't gone too badly, I have snacked more today than I have previous two days but that's because I had work tonight 5.30 until 9.30 so I don't have tea until late so need a snack before work to keep me going. 

I didn't go to the gym today, my legs and my stomach ache from yesterday so I thought it wise to leave it today because I really want to go tomorrow so I gave it a miss. I'm going to try and do my best to increase mt distance again tomorrow, even if the extra Km is walking, I want to Km's to start adding up on the right hand side of this blog.

plankaday# attempt today was a measly 31 seconds, but my stomach seriously aches, like my upper abs. I just coughed and it really hurt haha

Hats off to everyone doing Janathon! I don't think I could do it in my current level of fitness but fingers crossed I will be able Juneathon. Probably not run everyday but doing something everyday! 

This post has turned out to be longer than I thought so I am off to paint my nails and read my book before bed! 

Love x 

BlogBlogBlog

I think I am seriously addicted to running blogs! I can't stop reading and searching for them! A few of the ones I just keep  refreshing are

• Fat Girl Running -  http://www.fatgirlrunning.co.uk/
• Loser for Life -  http://www.loserforlife.com/
• JogBlog Running Blog -  http://www.jog-blog.co.uk/
• Run for the Quiet - http://runforthequiet.wordpress.com/

I am reading a lot of interesting things and learning a lot about running and running injuries. I have read about foaming and icing etc which I'd never even heard of before! I may need some of these recovery strategies tomorrow as I did 5k today! I thought I better get on with it and just do it, to be honest, it wasn't quite as bad as I thought, it was very hot in the gym! But I am looking forward to getting my fitness up and running outdoors! I am going to try to go for an outdoor run at least once a week! 

I have been reading about Janathon and I really wished I had found out about it sooner because I would have done it (or attempted to)! I know you can do it from whenever in January and continue but I don't want to do it half heartedly! I will be doing Juneathon instead!

Whilst reading about Janathon, I found out about #plankaday! I don't really know much about it but what I do understand is that you have to do a plank each day and record your findings. I asked my brother to go first as he did an amazing 1 minute and 33.7 seconds! There is no way I can compete with this so I need to get some practice in! My attempt was 39 seconds so not too bad but definite room for improvement! 

A 5k was completed today! I aimed to do 4k today (so one more than yesterday) but I thought I'd keep going and do 5k. I did do quite a lot of walking and did it in 40 mins and 3 seconds. I'm not worried about my times at the moment, for the next 2 weeks I am just going to try and concentrate on actually doing the 5k and then getting my time better!

My meals today consisted of Tomatoes on Toast (142 cals)

A wholemeal pitta bread with ham and carrot sticks (chunks) (229 cals)

I didn't eat the cheese, it ended up back in the fridge as I didn't fancy it, so I didn't add this to the calorie count!

And I had a mushroom omelette and salad, but I didn't take a picture of this as I was too hungry and gobbled it down! Of course I had snacks and plenty of drinks in between these meals! :)

I have just going twitter! Mainly to record my plankaday efforts (poor at the moment) and my running efforts and to tweet other bloggers!

@E_ninetytwo

so follow me :) 

Love x

Calories: 901 (so far)
Km's: 5
Calories burnt: 507
#plankaday: 39 seconds

Fitness Levels..

It is amazing how quickly your fitness can drop! I haven't really done any exercise for probably nearly 2 months and my fitness has seriously depleted! I knew I wouldn't be able to jump on the treadmill and run 5k straight off but I was surprised how out of breath I got as soon as I started running. Every few hundred meters I had to slow down to a fast walk just to get my breath back. With it being the first time back at the gym I didn't want to over do it and make myself sick or pull a muscle etc! I did 3k and once I'd come off the treadmill I was going to go back on but I thought better of it, I didn't want to over do it. I can feel my legs when I walk up the stairs now though! I did 5k on the bike, 3k on the treadmill, 5 minutes on the vile arm machine and some of the weights on my legs. The rotating arm machine really makes my arms ache but I am going to do 5 minutes every time I go to the gym so I am working my arms because I want to tone up my arms.

I need to do some interval training to increase my fitness. I used to do 100m sections, 100 walk (6.5km/h) 100m jog (8km/h) 100m run (9km/h) and then 100m sprint (either 10 or 10.5 km/h). This way I run 400m sections and then km's add up quite quickly and hopefully it will increase my fitness soon or a 10k will be out of the question by May!

http://www.bodyandsoul.com.au/body+fitness/workouts/anyone+can+run+10km,7517
This websites gives an "Anyone can run 10k" plan and offers a training program

"Training Program

You'll be training in three different program styles each week.

1. Low-intensity, long-duration cardio: This involves single-paced jogging for relatively long periods. Your aim is to keep moving for the entire time, no matter how slow your pace. Don't worry - you'll be alternating jogging with walking to catch your breath.
2. High-intensity interval training: These sessions lift the intensity by reducing the volume. There's no jogging: you'll run at a fast pace for shorter spurts to make them manageable and your recovery periods will be inactive. You rest for the same amount of time that it took you to complete the previous run. For example, if a 500-metre run takes you three minutes, then you can rest for three minutes. Go hard!
3. Strength circuits: We've showcased five exercises that strengthen your legs for running. We'll be putting the exercises together in the following three ways to really get your heart rate up.

• Circuit: Complete 10 reps of exercise one, 10 reps of exercise two and so on, until you've done 10 reps of each exercise. Rest, then complete another round of each exercise until you've completed the recommended number of sets.
• Freestyle: You can do the exercises in any order and the amount of reps you do at a time are up to you. For instance, you may start with 15 squats, then do 20 core climbers and 10 lunges. Just make sure that by the end of the session you've completed the total volume of reps recommended for each exercise.
• Endurance challenge: Complete all the reps for exercise one before moving on to exercise two. For example, you might do 20 reps of squats, rest, and then do 10 more. This style will up the muscle burn and raise your endurance." 

I am going to start this program tomorrow, I just wanted to go do something in the gym today to 'ease myself in'.

So far today I have consumed 404 calories and burnt 420 at the gym! It does feel good to be eating healthy and really concentrating on what I am eating.

Love x

"For Tomorrow We Diet.."

This is a very very appropriate phrase for today as my diet starts tomorrow. I am really looking forward putting my all into planning what I am eating and doing some exercise. I am going to weigh in again tomorrow to get a definite starting weight and then weigh every Wednesday from then on. Hopefully I will still be 9st9 and it has not gone up giving me an extra pound to lose. 

I think going to the gym will be a shock to the system tomorrow but I am genuinely excited!

And in all honestly, I'm sick of eating rubbish and cant wait to eat really nice and really good food!

I'll update tomorrow after the gym if I am still alive!

Love  x 

"Keep It To Yourself.."

At the moment, because I have not officially started my diet yet, I don't really have much to say but I feel the need to blog! I don't just want to keep repeating the same thing. I am starting to check the calories on things I usually eat and start to think about what I should be eating and trying to reduce my portion sizes. It is surprising how many calories you eat without realising.

I am glad major running and sporting events are aired on TV, I have just been watching the Edinburgh Cross Country Run the female was a 6k run and the fastest time was 21.30 minutes and the male was a 3k race with the fastest being just over 9 minutes, 9.09 I think. I was trying to think how fast I can run 1k, and I am going to see on Monday how long it takes to do 1k and do this every Monday training session and try to improve it each time. Setting myself little goals and challenges really works! What works for you?

I have just had a good clearout of my wardrobe but instead of coming straight online and looking for things to replace the things I've thrown out or put on eBay, I am going to wait, no point spending money on clothes that hopefully won'y fit me in 2 or 3 months time is there? Plus the SS12 things are starting to come in, with pastel pinks, peaches and mint greens and it is too wintery to wear that at the moment!

I love painting my nails bright and dark colours so I think I am going to go and paint my nails black I think!
Love x

"Don't Put Off Until Tomorrow..What You Can Put Off Indefinitely."

So my motivational post didn't work, I have not yet made it to the gym! I have a 'Keep Calm and Carry On' style flip chart and some of the anecdotes are quite funny and inspirational. The topic of this post tonight is based on today's motto "Don't Put Off Until Tomorrow..What You Can Put Off Indefinitely." I keep telling myself to get to the gym, my brain wants to do it but my body still seems to be in Christmas slacking mode! The end of the week is going to be awful, I have 2 birthday celebrations including meals out and a Nando's catch up with the girlfriends. Instead of beating myself up about it I am going to watch what I'm eating at the other times throughout the weekend and go strict strict strict from Monday. I have devised an eating plan so I am going to timetable this and plan my exercise for the month! I need to get into a routine ready for starting back to Uni towards the middle of the month. I know that once I'm back at the gym and back into a routine I'll be dying to go, it's just making that step!

Completing the 5k Race for Life in the summer was the most amazing feeling ever so I am going to sign up for two more runs this year. Knowing people were sponsoring me and it was all booked really helped me get to the gym and push myself for the miles last year. I'm planning to do a 10k in a few months time (April/May time) and then do a Bupa Great Run about September/October time. Hopefully the challenge of these distances will really push me to clock up the miles (or the kms) and get me fit too! My running trainers will soon be out and well used! 

I recently made an amazing Chocolate Swiss Roll / Chocolate log and thought I'd share the recipe I used. I got it off the Cadbury website and it made a lovely cake! (Not very healthy but it wasn't for me!)

Ingredients:

Cake

3 medium eggs

75g caster sugar
75g plain flour
25g Bournville Cocoa Powder
Caster sugar, for dusting
Butter Icing:
100g butter, softened
100g icing sugar
75g Cadbury Dairy Milk, melted

How to make it:

1. Preheat the oven to 200⁰C, gas mark 6.  Grease and line the Swiss roll tin with baking parchment.

2.  Using an electric hand mixer, whisk the eggs and sugar together in a large bowl until thick and creamy and leaves a trail.  Sieve the flour and cocoa together and fold into the mixture carefully with 1 tbsp hot water, trying not to knock out too much air.

3.  Place into the prepared tin and tilt the tin to level the mixture, making sure it goes right into the corners.  Bake for 10-12 minutes until springy to the touch.

4.  Dust a large piece of baking parchment with caster sugar and turn the sponge out onto it.  Trim off the hard edges and make a dent along the width, 1cm in.  From this end, roll it up with the paper in the middle.  Cool on a wire rack.

5.  Beat the butter and icing sugar together until light and fluffy and then beat in the melted chocolate.  Unroll the sponge, spread over the butter icing and up roll again.  Serve in slices.

The cake in this Swiss roll has not butter so the fat content would be quite low if no butter cream was used. Diabetic or No Added Sugar Jam could be used instead of the butter cream and I'm sure it would help to add a sweet and moist flavour to the middle of the cake. I covered this in Cake Covering chocolate melted in order to decorate but it definitely does not need this! I think it looks much nicer without the covering as a moist Swiss Roll. You could even miss out the coco power and have a plain and jam Swiss roll served with fresh strawberries which would create a lovely and hopefully not too fattening dessert!

Let me know what you think of this
Love x