Dreher Park Dash 5 K

It was a hot beautiful night this past weekend! The perfect night for Bryan and I to run our first 5K TOGETHER! I was so excited! I used to run the Dreher Park Dash every year in college.


The race draws a huge crowd due to the fact that it is a night race and provides an ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT cookout at the end.


It was clear skies, flat grounds, and gorgeous views, BUT I was feeling tired when we pulled up to the registration tent at 6pm. Prior to the race, I had made the mistake of falling asleep by the pool and was still feeling sleepy and relaxed.



I knew I had to wake up fast. We signed in at the registration booth, picked up our T-Shirt packets, and did a warm-up. After 1 mile, I felt AMAZING!


I am so glad I warmed up BC.....

I placed first in my age group!!!! I was on cloud 9!!!

I ended up finishing 5th woman overall, 1st in my age group, and ran a time of 21:48 averaging 7:02 min miles. I had been so worried that I wouldn't be able to hit the 22s but was so happy!!!

Bryan did AMAZING! He finished 15th in his competitive 25-30age group and ran in the 27s. I am so proud of him! He doesn't run often and primarily does weight-lifting so this was a great accomplishment!

After the race we enjoyed fresh Watermelon, hotdogs, hamburgers, spinach salad, homemade mac'n'cheese, and the privilege of socializing with hundreds of other runners in palm beach county.

I love community events! It brings people with similar passions together!

Later that evening we went back to my place, took long hot showers, and curled up on the couch with some Tres Leches from Tulipan Bakery (a Colombian Bakery downtown) and a few episodes of HGTV house hunters (ONLINE).

I love watching full episodes online- no commercials and its FREE! (since my roomie and I decided not to pay cable this year).

--------------------------------------

Question:
Do you run 5Ks throughout the year?

I haven't for about 3 years. But am going to start signing up for more of them. I miss the feeling of being involved in the running community. Knowing the fast runners, etc.

Benefits of Mango + Tonight's workout

{Picture Source}

This morning I started with a huge bowl of freshly sliced mango. The smell, the sweet refreshing taste, the delicious flavor! I love everything about mangoes! And they go with everything! Chicken, spinach salad, tortilla chips, desserts, ice cream, EVERYTHING is better with mangoes ;-)

Since I consume many many mangoes on a weekly basis I decided I would provide the nutritional benefits of mangoes in a healthy lifestyle. Enjoy!!!!

Did you know that Mangoes ....



Improve Digestion- with powerful enzymes they aid people with indigestion problems with their several bio-active elements.

Lower Cholesterol- (I should subtly inform my dad) due to their high level of soluble dietary fiber, Pectin and Vitamin C. They lower Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) Cholesterol.

Make for Better Sex- (great to know!) the 2.3-3mg of Vitamin E boosts the sex drive.

Improve Concentration and Memory- (wish I knew this fact in college! lol) Glutamine found in mangoes improves memory.

Treat Acne- (this one was interesting!) If you cut mangoes in thin slices and place on your skin for 15 minutes, it absorbs dirty oils that clog pores and cause acne.

Provide High Iron for Women- (as a runner, I am lacking iron) mangoes are rich in Iron which is lacking from many women's diets today.

Treat Diabetes- (good fact to know) the fruit AND the leaves help fight the disease! Put the leaves in water overnight and drink in the morning.

Prevents Cancer- (what fruit doesn't... ;-) ) Mangoes have lots of antioxidants.

If you haven't already, check out my mango pie recipe.

----------------------------

Tonight's Workout:

I have a 5K race coming up on Saturday, and wanted to get in some miles this morning. But it just wasn't happening on 5 hours of sleep. So I opted for a Bikram Yoga session tonight instead. I love Bikram! I looked forward to the session all day.

It is the one time I can completely clear my mind and focus on me, focus on being me, focus on breathing, being thankful for who God created me to be. I believe Yoga is just as healthy for the body as it is for the mind!

Question:

What was your workout today?

Long Workouts are Relaxing!

Monday's Workout: Bikram Session


Monday was a slightly stressful day at work. I am a rep for a medical company and visit physicians, hospitals, and health care facilities in PBC and Treasure Coast region. Sometimes the driving gets to be a lot and I can drive up to 200miles a day!

However, there are also several benefits to this as well. Before I started I never left the 15mile radius of work, school, church, friends, grocery store, shopping mall. Now that I am driving all over south Florida everyday I have become extremely familiar with different cities. I love to try new things and experience new atmospheres so it is exciting not knowing where I may end up each day.


Monday was one of those "lots of driving days" and I knew I needed to de-stress after work. What better way then Bikram Yoga! After 90 minutes of intense sweat I felt amazing! I actually had more energy and felt more in tune with my body and breathing, etc.


Its funny but since I started doing yoga, I have started to even sleep in savasana position- which I heard is really good for blood flow.


Tuesday's Workout: 44min run outside


I was still on a high from my yoga session the night before so I decided to get up early and go on a 5.25 mile run over on Palm Beach Island.


I love morning runs! There are always tons of bikers and other runners out. It is fun to see the city wake up, restaurants setting out their tables, boutiques putting out their signs, coffee shops filling up with lines of business people.

aerial view of the bridges I run

The rest of the day was a rollarcoaster at work but knowing that I had gotten in a run that morning made it everything and anything bearable!

Today's Workout: 1 hour TM run

Then today I slept in. It felt sooooo good to wake up with the light streaming through my window instead of the alarm clock buzzing in my ear- although it was still 7am! ;-)

I had a perfect morning- reading a little, making a green tea soy milk latte, and one egg omelet with a side of fruit.

The plan is to run an hour tonight on the treadmill. I love long slow paced runs! I can just zone out and let my thoughts run wild :-)

Question: What's your favorite type of workout?

I love to get home from work and just go- not thinking about speed, form, anything. Just breathing and listening to music as I mindlessly run for minutes on end!

Weekend Workouts

This weekend was full of a variety of different workouts!



Saturday's Workout:


Saturday morning I decided to give the weekend a fresh start and rolled out of bed at 8am to make the 9am spin class at the gym. Its one of the most popular classes and I had to be there early to sign in reserve my bike ;-) I warmed up before class on the stair climber:



10 minutes - star climber

70 minutes - intense spin class riding! :)


I felt soooooo good afterwards! I love morning workouts. It de-stresses me and gives me energy for the rest of the day. I love the feeling of being completely DRENCHED in sweat because I know I pushed myself to the fullest.




Sunday's Workout:


Sunday morning I decided to do a quick gym session before church and was glad I did! :) Once again the rest of the day was so much more enjoyable having sweat out some toxins early in the morning!


My workout was:

15 minutes Stairmaster

15 minutes Treadmill (interval training below)

50 leg raises


Interval Training

5min at 7.4- warmup

1 min at 7.5

1 min at 9.2

1min at 7.5

1min at 9.3

1min at 7.5

1min at 9.3

1min at 7.6

1min at 9.4

1min at 7.6

1min at 10.0!!!

-----------------



The rest of the weekend was spent:


shopping with Bryan

eating Mexican at On The Border



Church

cheering on the US Woman's Soccer Team in the World Cup (at the local sports bar)

reading The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (which I highly recommend!)

getting in some pool time

cleaning

going to a Brazillian BBQ

and OF COURSE spending time with friends!

I also purchased a new scale over the weekend. I want to stay on track with my fitness goals and have gained 5lbs in the last month (probably from all the BBQs and summer parties I have been attending).

But I truly believe that if I stay PROACTIVE in my fitness goals I will attain those goals and get back on track before 5lbs becomes 10lbs, and 10lbs become 15lbs etc.....



Staying positive about who I am and not letting my number on the scale define me is the key! But the scale is a great helpful measuring tool to help me see results.



Question:

Do you use a scale? How often do you weigh yourself?



I usually like to know my weight in the morning so I know if I am maintaining a healthy lifestyle or not and can base my nutritional choices and decisions for the day on that knowledge.

Salsa and Bikram

In line with spicing up my workout routine I am attending a Bikram yoga session and taking Salsa lessons tonight! I am so excited to try something new!


A few friends of mine (guys actually!) found a salsa lounge downtown that offers lessons for $5 on Thursday nights. Hey, if I can support them to learn a few dance moves to impress the ladies and learn a few things myself- I'm Definitely in!!!


So, I am curious what to wear to a Salsa class. I guess it never matters the first time. I can fall under the "I'm new, I don't know anything" category.


Just for fun, I googled ridiculous salsa outfits and came up with the following:


Hopefully I can do better than this! haha.

Have a great Day!!! XOXO


Source

Source

Spice up Workouts

Lately I have been trying to spice things up in my daily exercise routine and it has been great. I have actually been looking forward to workouts. For the longest time I was stuck in a rut- running 40 min a day (5 miles) 4-5days a week. But lately I have been trying new routes. longer distances, different goal paces, new music, and even running at different times of day and love it!

Tuesday's Workout: Yesterday I did a morning run and an evening short jog. It was so nice to break up the mileage and do a little more than normal. AM RUN: 2 miles @ 8:13pace. 3 miles @7:30pace PM RUN: 2 miles @ 8:30pace daily total= 7miles. I felt great on the evening jog knowing I had already completed the bulk of training and it was a joy run to enjoy the scenary.

Wednesday's Workout: Today I slept in. I love getting much needed sleep and having time for reading and omlettes in the morning before going to work. Then tonight I did an hour run on the treadmill at the gym. I did mental increments of 6 minutes and time flew! I ended up running 7 miles with a brisk walk at the end.

Thursday's Workout: Tomorrow I hope to get in a Bikram yoga session after work and a short jog.

Breaking it up makes running so much more interesting. I am hoping to run 5k race this summer so I have something to train for again. Races are just the motivation I need.

Happy Wednesday!

Pic Source

Weekend Fun

Carraba's Italian Grill for dinner with the family in Orlando.

My G-ma and I.

Bryan and I at Disney boardwalk.

An amazing grill with the best name ever!

What a much needed weekend :-)

Other weekend festivities included:

>A trip to the Farmer's Market- loading up on herbs, pinneapple, watermelon, sweet peppers, mango, avocado, farm-fresh eggs, sprouts, broccoli, grapes, fresh bread, and raw nuts.

>Pool time while reading The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

>A run along the intercoastal waterway. 5.25miles

>A stroll at dusk, watching the yachts with Bryan