It feels like it has been awhile! Updates and new goals.

These past two weeks have been a whirl wind of test, papers, ear aches, respiratory infections, and what I thought was pink eye, but thankfully was not! The first two apply to me and the last three apply to Rocket. My poor little guy has been to the pediatrician more in the past couple of months then his first year. Fortunately for Lee and I and Rocket, he is getting better; no more wheezing and terrible congested coughing. I take Rocket to the pediatrician again on Monday for a follow up. Hoping the pediatrician will take him off the nebulizer.

Because my mommy duties have been double time this past month, consistency in my muscle building workout plan fell by the wayside. I have still workout but I have averaged about 35 minutes in the gym opposed to the hour I was completing in the first and second week. This week I ran more then the week before (which was none): mostly concentrating on speed and hill training for shorter distances (1.5 miles twice, 5k once, and 1 mile once). Quality and intensity of my shorter workouts have been quite high as each day after I workout the body parts worked experienced DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness). The last two days of the weekday I also began taking two supplements: 200mg of CoQ10 and one scoop of plant protein powder with greens made my Lifetime Life's Best. The Coenzyme Q10 is supposed to help with muscle recovery by increasing blood supply to my heart and muscles. The (vegan and soy free) plant protein powder which has glutamic acid, algae, spirulina, and chlorophyll (and many many more wonderful ingredients) will ideally help me build muscle and recover more efficiently from my strenuous workouts. I hope to see and feel improvements in my body as this month ends and the next one begins.

In March, April, and May I am looking forward to competing in a 5k and 10k race. I am up to run/walking 5 miles so by the end of March I will be up to running 6 miles.

I will leave you with a picture of my first vegan meal at the UNC at Pembroke dinning hall that recently started serving vegan dishes, and picture of Rocket who is always my inspiration to be a fit veggie mama!

Run Today and Then Some

Today started out with good intentions: a gentle detox for my body and my mind.  The goal was to do a water, juice, and herbal tea fast today not for weight loss but to give my body a day off from using so much engery to digest food.  I read an article last night in one of the free mini-magazines that I get from my local health food store that discussed how much engery the body uses to digest cooked foods so last night I decided that I would give my body the rest it needed by drinking lots of fresh pressed juice with my Breville Juicer and lots of herbal tea and water.  Those good intentions lasted until 10am when I decided what I really wanted was homemade hot chocolate and toast with earth balance.  Staying vegan, I used non-dairy chocolate chips melted in soy milk but regardless my good intentions were waylaid completely for my desire for sugar and fat.  After finishing said hot chocolate and toast I felt pretty crappy and for the next 2 hours watched National Geographic's "Wild China" and reading my almost completed fiction novel of the month: Under Fishbone Clouds by Sam Meekings- which by the way is written like an extended and mythic poem.  When Rocket awoke from his nap ready to play and eventually eat. I still felt sluggish and foolish for giving in so easily to the lure of hot chocolate and toast, and it was pretty difficult to be my usual "run around the house and play with my son' kind of mom.  Regardless I did my best to muster up some sort of enthusiasm when I took him outside for some sunlight and fresh air.  The combination of the two had a rejuivenating effect on me because within 10 minutes or so I was stretching out my body and playing with Rocket with gusto.  After a while I felt ready to take Rocket for a little walk in the jogger.  Well that short walk turned into a nearly 4 miles jog/run/speed walk/recovery walk.  Happy to say that afterwards I feel pretty awesome and ready to get all the little things I had planned today completed sans fasting.  

Right after running. Rocket fell asleep on mile 2.

A little bit about my run:
     I ran the first 2.25 miles at about a 12 minute per mile pace. Slow and steady as I really had not run the last week as I focused more on strength training and besides it was rainy and cold.  After I had returned running back to my cul de sac I felt really limber and ready to run faster so I picked up the pace for the next 0.1 miles and alternated sprinting that and walking the next 0.1 miles two more times. After that I increased the sprint to 0.15 miles with same distance recovery speed walk two more times. Finally I finished up with a 0.2 mile sprint and a slow jog until I had completed 3.5 miles.  

 

As always after I am done I do a recovery cool-down walk and stretch out my lower body doind static stretches.