The Importance of Cross Training

As a runner, sometimes that's all I want to do.  I was never a huge fan of yoga, or biking, or the elliptical, until the past few years.  Running can really tear down your body if you don't complement it with other things.  It's great for your cardiovascular health, and great for toning leg muscles and core muscles, but there are ways that you can strengthen your body to help with the grinding that comes with running.

Several years ago, I was the in the best shape of my life.  I was running, doing Pilates, and doing ab work.  I could run pain free and faster than I had since my early high school years.  For some reason, I got away from that, I can't for the life of me figure out why.  Then I just ran.  I ran and got hurt.  I trained slow, struggling to get anything done.  Last year I started teaching Pilates and spin class.  I felt great again. Even though strength training was on the back burner, I was still getting stronger and leaner.

After I had my second baby last spring, I started with the running again.  Running is what's important to me, it's what I love.  Not to mention, it was the only thing I had time for.  If I got to squeeze a workout in, it was definitely going to be running.

I started back teaching Pilates and Yogalates this winter.  It's the best thing that could've happened to me.  After taking some time off from running because of the busy life of being a mom, I decided I had to make time to exercise.  I wanted to set a good example for my kids.  Now after having two babies and being almost 30 years old, I'm running faster than I have since high school.  I'm feeling great.  I'm honestly shocked most days when I hit one mile, two miles, three miles and hear my splits.  I can't believe it.

I run 3-4 days a week, do Pilates and Yogalates, and try to XT as much as possible.  I've also been taking doTERRA's Lifelong Vitality Pack.  These multivitamins are the bomb diggity.  These are the only things that I have changed in my life and it's obviously working!  They give me the energy I need to do anything!

So remember the next time that you're training for some kind of running race, remember to get on the elliptical, go to spin class, swim laps, go to yoga or Pilates, or go for a hike.  Do anything to switch it up for your body.  It will benefit more than you can ever imagine!

~Serenity~

Oil Pulling...HUH????

I tried something new this morning.  Oil pulling.  Raise your hand if you have heard of this!

I first heard about oil pulling about 4 months ago.  I got up the nerve to try it 2 months ago.  The first time I tried it, I gagged immediately and spit the oil out.  So a few days later, I tried it again.  I gagged AGAIN.  It was awful.  It wasn't the taste, that was fine.  It was the chunky consistency of the coconut oil.

This morning, I tried it with a teaspoon of coconut oil and again, I gagged, but I pushed through.  When the oil finally melted into its liquid state, it was fine.  I did it for about 10 minutes which is pretty good for your first run and especially good for me considering what happened the first two times I did it.

Oil pulling is pretty cool when you learn how beneficial it is for your mouth and body as a whole.  You can use a variety of oils to try oil pulling.  I used Organic Virgin Coconut Oil.  You can also you sunflower oil, sesame oil, safflower oil, grapeseed oil.  Just make sure that the oil is safe to be ingested, even though you're not going to swallow.  You can even add a couple drops of Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade (CPTG) doTERRA Essential Oils such as peppermint, OnGuard, Lemon, or Wild Orange.

 


So, you might be asking, what exactly does oil pulling do?

• Improve oral health by detoxifying teeth and gums
• Whitens teeth
• Relief from congestion in the sinus cavities and throat
• Helps improve skin conditions
• Helps arthritis
• Helps asthma
• Can help to relieve headaches, infections, liver problems
• Helps with hormonal imbalances

How does it do all this???
Oil pulling helps to pull out toxins in the body, particularly your mouth and stomach, and get rid of those toxins when you spit out the oil.  Your parents may have told you this when you were younger, but your mouth is one of the dirtiest parts of your body.  There is so much bacteria living in the dark, wet, closed environment you call your mouth.  It's pretty gross when you think of it.

Who came up with oil pulling???
It has been around for centuries.  It was first documented as a practice in Ayurvedic text which is native to the Indian subcontinent.  You, know, these people really had something going here.  We "modern people" have a good man named Dr. F. Karach to thank for "bringing healthy back".  :)  He realized the importance of this ancient tradition when thinking of how easy things, good or bad, can enter our bloodstream through our mouth.  I even read something that said this is how Native Americans used to "brush" their teeth.

So swish the oil around for 20 minutes.  When you're done, be sure to spit it out in the trash can since coconut oil solidify when cooled.  You don't want to clog your drain!

I challenge you to give this a try.  Don't give up if you gag the first couple of times.  For me, the third time really was a charm.  Once you get past the chunkiness of the oil, it's actually pretty easy.

If you try this, please comment below and let me know what you think!!

Another Half Marathon

The time has come.  Another baby, another race.  Today is the day I start training for a half marathon.  I'm training for the IronMom Half that is the Saturday of Mother's Day weekend.  I haven't run a big race since Lila was about 18 months old.  I am slowing working my way back up to a marathon, but scheduling and free time right now are limiting me to a half, which I'm completely ok with.  :)

I'm going to be stocking up on a few of my favorite oils for exercise!

Deep Blue - Great for muscle aches/pain, tension, joint pain, inflammation, arthritis, back pain...ALL of which I get at some point when training for halves and fulls!

AromaTouch - Great for anxiety, muscles/aches pain, relaxation, tension, muscle cramps (charley horses).

Elevation - Dab a little on you temples, your neck, your forehead before your run for an energizing, stress-free, uplifting run!

Peppermint - Mix with a little coconut oil and rub into your legs before a run to help with keeping your body cool and helping keep you alert and focused on your run.

OnGuard - Last but not least, take a few drops of OnGuard daily or even rub into your hands before having to head up to the gym on those freezing days when you can't get outside to run.  OnGuard helps protect you from airborne pathogens and helps your body stay healthy while you're running yourself into the ground training!  :)

If you would like more information on these oil or others, let me know!  I'd love to talk with you about them.

XOXO

O.M.G.

Tomorrow it will be one week since I started with a personal trainer.  I'm still sore from last Wednesday.  Wowsa!  I knew that I needed a swift kick in the ass and I sure got it!  I have no doubt in my mind that this is exactly what I needed to get back on track.  I'm feeling great!

We have been doing total body workouts and wow!  My legs, my arms, my...everything! I just can't say enough.  I just really needed this.  After this week, I'm gonna go out on my own and hopefully be able to keep training.  A few of the things he's having me do (things my body has missed so much) are:
squats, deadlifts, calf raises, triceps triceps triceps, chest and more triceps.  Today I did the farmer's carry with, wait for it....35 lb dumbbells.  I was shocked that I could do this.  Britt knew I could and even though I bitched about it, still made me do the weight AND I DID IT!  Sometimes you just get so into your routine or what you remember of past routines that you're afraid, or don't even think, to do something different.  THIS is why I hired Britt.  He had to get me out of my element.  He had to make me uncomfortable.  Shock my body.  I'm so pleased already with my workouts with him.

Call me crazy, but I can already see a little difference in my core.  My legs will come, my arms will tone soon enough, but I can already see it in my core.  I can't believe it.  Now I just have to stick to it.

Where it's gonna get really tough is now I want to run a half marathon here in October.  I'm gonna really have to use my time wisely.  I want to be able to keep my strength workouts going, but I'm also going to have to get the miles in.  I think it will be hard, but I the last race I trained for was a marathon and the time it takes out of your life to do that it crazy.  Luckily, the race is at the end of October, so I will be able to get most, if not all of my running done outside.  This is huge because that means I can take my kids in the stroller, even though it will not be good for my time/pace, I will still be able to get the miles in.  So let's just see how much more complicated I can make my life!

One thing I need to be more serious about is my nutrition and protein intake.  If I'm not careful, my milk supply is going to decrease.  I need to make sure I'm getting enough good, whole food in my body so my body can continue down the right track.

I hope to update soon on my progress with my strength training and half marathon training.

Personal Training

Hair stylists don't cut their own hair, wedding planners usually don't plan their own weddings, OBs don't deliver their own babies...

Even though I am a personal trainer, I find it hard to train myself really hard.  So I'm thinking of hiring my own personal trainer for a few sessions to try to shock my body to get it back to shape.  If I can just get a swift kick in the ass, I think I can find the motivation to continue my training.

I'm also about 95% sure I am going to run the Shawnee half marathon in Harrisburg this fall.  Check out their Facebook page here to stay informed of happenings and group training information.  I have gone back and forth on whether or not I want to do this.  It's just a half and I know I can finish with even minimal training, but
1. I don't want to get hurt and
2. I don't want to run so bad that I felt like I wasted my time.
I have about 3 months to train if I get started next week.  It's harder to make time for the runs now and to my surprise, it's not because of having two kids, but because of having a husband who works midnights.  I never even thought how this would affect my workouts.  I am an evening runner, always have been.  But now, even if I wanted to go in the morning before work, I can't do that because he's not home.  It's weird having to schedule around that.

Please know that I'm not complaining.  My husband's career is very important to both of us.  I just really thought "oh, this will be hard getting the girls to bed" or "it will be hard doing supper and bath time".  It never dawned on me that I would have to find a new time to workout.

The only time I'm finding now is lunch time.  Next week, I'm going to start utilizing my lunch hour to try to get a 45 minute or so workout or run in a few days a week.  We'll see how it goes.

As far as my training, I'll keep you all informed of my progress.  :)

Postpartum Running

I really wanted to blog sooner than this about running after pregnancy, but
1. I just really haven't had time
and
2. I haven't gotten to do exactly what I really wanted to do.

Most people who read my blogs know that I ran throughout my entire pregnancy, both times.  This time I felt really really good exercising for the entire 9 months.  I taught Pilates for the first 4 months and cycling for 36 weeks.  Once again I ran up until the day I had her.  I knew that this would help me in many ways especially being pregnant in the winter months this time, it would help not only physically, but emotionally.  I'm so glad I was able to do this.

After I had Viv, I really felt great...like really great!  We were out an about when she was 2 days old.  When she was 10 days old, I felt good enough to go to the gym and get on the elliptical.  I knew running probably wasn't the best idea.  I was still bleeding, but not bad.  At 14 days PP, I decided I could run.  I went to the track to jog a bit.  It started pelting rain.  Must have been a sign.  About a week later, I tried again at the track.  I made it a few laps before I had to get home to V.  Without going into too much detail, you shouldn't run until you have stopped bleeding, no matter how good you feel.  Just wait.  There is a reason they want you to rest some after birth.  Your body can't handle that on top of the trauma it just went though.

At about 4 weeks PP I stopped bleeding and was able to run again (even though I hadn't been to my 6 week check up).  Since then I have been running as much as time will allow with a newborn, a 2 1/2 year old and a husband that works nights.  :)  I'm feeling great.  The only thing not going as planned (hahahaha) is the pregnancy weight falling off.  After I had Lila, I literally dropped the weight and was back in my clothes by like 8-10 days.  Not happening this time.  V is 9 weeks old and it's still lingering.  This time I am breastfeeding (successfully), so that makes a difference.  Some weight tends to stick around for reserve while breastfeeding.  I'm about 8 lbs off from where I was when I got pregnant this time.  While I'd like to get back to that, I know it's probably not going to happen any time soon.  Right now I'm concentrating on healthy eating and just getting in enough exercise to feel good.

I am trying to get more protein in my body to make myself leaner at this weight while still taking in enough calories to keep my milk supply up.  From now on, I'll be posting strength workouts and running workouts that I'm trying to do to get my bod back into better shape!  :)