I drove with Callie, Mollie and Alex from the airport Friday morning, and we stopped at a [...]]]>

Our weekend was full of delicious food, so I thought the food deserved it’s own post! I’m linking up with Jenn for What I ate Wednesday at the BLEND retreat. (Find part one of my Blend recap here).

I drove with Callie, Mollie and Alex from the airport Friday morning, and we stopped at a local plant-based vegan restaurant for lunch on the way to Blend, the Vertical Diner.  YUM!

Tofu scramble with Zen wok veggies; Raspberry and chocolate chip pancakes

After checking in and getting our swag bag, there were plenty of sampling options.  I tried a few bites of various bars.  I LOVE the Picky Bars my roommate brought, and the Attune dark chocolate probiotic bar.

Everyone dressed up for dinner, and it began with appetizers and cocktails.  Veggies, homemade dips, bean patties, and summer rolls with a Thai peanut sauce… delicious!

Dinner included a green salad, quinoa salads, roasted veggies, chicken, fish and three desserts, including a beautiful berry tart. I wasn’t all that hungry after eating and snacking all day, but it was all really good.

Post workouts, Saturday morning breakfast included yogurt, Muesli, fresh fruit and bagels with all varieties of cream cheese. We also got to try Blue Print’s green juice…. great option if you don’t want to make your own.

After a visit to the sauna with friend, we showered and relaxed (and got haircuts!) Amanda shared Vega products and I tried the Chocolate Coconut protein bar.  I’m not a bit protein bar consumer, but this was my favorite from the weekend.

A group of us headed into town and got lunch at Whole Foods.

Veggie sushi roll and Chicken Tortilla soup

Lunch with Lisa, Debra, Amanda and Lindsay

We did a little walking and shopping before heading back to the resort. For dinner, I went with friends to Wasatch Pub and Brewery in the downtown area.  There was a great Main Street with unique shops, restaurants and bars. I had a yummy quinoa black bean salad and buffalo chili.

Little bit of trivia for you: apparently, Park City is the black sheep of Utah with more bars in one place than the entire state (I was told there are about 20.)  Half the group went to the bar, while the other half went back to my suite where Mamma B (Janeetha’s mom) was making her famous scones.  Does anything beat fried dough?

With happy tummies, we crashed hard, only to awaken early for boot-y -kicking-camp.

Post workout, I passed out Drink Chia samples and bottles and had some myself for recovery.

We had an enormous spread for breakfast- sponsored by Chobani.  There were adorable jars of overnight oats with toppings, yogurt, made-to-order omelets, fresh fruit and Chobani pancakes.

I was too hungry to remember to photograph my plate, but I had a packed veggie omelet and a jar of overnight oats.  It hit the spot!

Before the final goodbye session, we got packed up.  I tucked my Healthy Bites into my carry on for afternoon snacking.  Lindsay brought a new (amazing) flavor- Paleo Lemon Cream! But my all-time favorite remains the mint chocolate chip.

After the final session of raffle giveaways, everyone trickled out.  My carpool stopped at Whole Foods again for a quick lunch.

I had a loaded salad and shared some dark chocolate.  Then it was off to the airport! Linz and I were on the same flight and we ran into Heather and Tess in the airport as well for one last goodbye picture.

And that’s a wrap!!

Have you tried any of these (or other) yummy new products?

In place of the “how to” sessions of some blogging gatherings, this [...]]]>

I’m not even sure where to start with this recap…. it was an amazing weekend. The BLEND retreat was designed as a place for bloggers to come together as friends- new and old.  We gathered this weekend in gorgeous Park City, Utah.

In place of the “how to” sessions of some blogging gatherings, this was about relaxing, socializing and connecting with virtual friends in person.  It was brilliant.  Carla wrote yesterday about big bloggers and cliques, and I have to say, this was the friendliest group of bloggers I’ve ever gathered with.  Everyone was excited to meet one another and make new friends.

The resort was stunning.  The food was incredible.  The workouts-intense, swag bag-unbelievable, and organized events- a blast.

But the highlight by far was the people and the relationships.

Appetizers Friday night with roomies and friends (Debra, Gena, Michelle, Tess)

Finally meeting lovely Laura

Definitely a highlight for me: going for a run with my dear blogging friend, Lisa.  We were lucky to connect with Debra (my roomie!) this weekend as well, and she joined us for a 10 mile run.  Nothing beats the bonding experience of running in the rain on a cold day, with altitude… frozen fingers… uphill both ways… okay, just one way, but it was a tough run! Seriously, the hardest I’ve done in a long time. Lisa seemed unscathed.  Debra and I felt like warriors who narrowly survived battle.

Post-breakfast hair cuts, thanks to the talented Lisa! With more dear, old friends- Christine and Amanda

Dinner with Miss United States and the Onnit reps

Post-dinner: Christine and I caught the lovely Healthy Bites creator, Lindsay!

Serious boot camp Sunday morning that my legs and butt are STILL feeling!

Sharing Drink Chia samples post workout! I was so excited to be sponsored by Drink Chia to share the chia goodness. (With Momma B and Krista)

Post-breakfast final ceremony and raffle prizes (I won Nutzo butter!!)

Saying goodbyes! [Top left: connecting with Brittany and Bobbie, Top right: final lunch with Katie, Linz, Christine, and Michelle; Bottom left: Meeting the sweet Meg; Bottom right: so nice to connect with the Purely Twins, Michelle and Lori]

Final goodbyes with Michelle and Lindsay

Lucked out to fly home with Linz- especially since I had very little time with her all weekend, and we found we had quite a bit in common!

There is so much more I could say, but I’ll wrap it up tomorrow with some of our delicious eats for What I ate Wednesday.

Lindsay, Janeetha and Katie did an incredible job pulling it all together and deserve a HUGE thank you! And a thank you to all the incredible sponsors as well.  It was a fantastic weekend- one that I would love to repeat!

Have you done a blogging conference? What’s your ideal girls weekend look like?

When I first started running in college, I stuck to my running schedule religiously.  I did some cross training as well, [...]]]>

When a goal race comes and goes, it’s so easy to look ahead to the next big goal.  And in the excitement, we can often forget to give our bodies adequate time for recovery.

When I first started running in college, I stuck to my running schedule religiously.  I did some cross training as well, but I was determined not to miss my runs.  I never took more than a few days off from running.

I’m not sure what I thought would happen if I missed one.  That I would suddenly gain weight?  That I would lose all of my fitness?

Of course, I eventually learned the hard way.  My most memorable lesson was after my first marathon.  I was so thrilled with my accomplishment, and wanted to take advantage of my fitness and keep running double digits on the weekends.  My body quickly let me know that was not enough recovery time, and I was forced to take 10 weeks off for a stress reaction or possible stress fracture.

In those ten weeks, I went through the usual emotions- denial, frustration, anger, but I eventually accepted it.  And then I took it as an opportunity to get stronger- I swam.  I started experimenting with spin classes.  I did more weights than I had ever done before.  And by the end of it, I had not gained weight (I actually lost a few pounds from not eating everything in sight after long runs!) and I had not lost fitness.  I ran a 5k a few weeks afterwards in a respectable time and was able to build my miles back up quickly.

Post-injury 5k in 21 minutes

As a runner, sometimes I forget that there are other ways to stay fit!! Recent research shows that functional fitness, interval training and HIIT/strength combos are some of the most efficient ways to gain fitness.  Weights with short bursts of intensity has the same benefits as an interval run, and often in much less time.  And interval training has just as many health benefits as endurance training.

I know this.  As a health coach, I don’t push my clients to run unless they want to.  So why do I do it?

Because I love it! And finding an activity we love is what really matters for long term health and fitness.

So for now, as long as my body allows, I’ll keep running. And I have a big goal.  Most of you know I registered for the Philly Marathon in November.  And those of you who follow me via the Under Armour challenge saw that my goal is 3:20.  Yikes!

It’s a goal that my half marathon time predicts is possible, but it’s going to take a lot of work to get there.  Training starts in 8 weeks.

However, in order to keep running well, I have learned to build in seasons of relative rest.  And that’s what the next 8 weeks will be for me.  I’ll still run a bit… but I’ll run when and for as far as I feel like, with no training plan.  And I’ll incorporate more weights and cross training to change things up.

Working toward a 5 minute plank- my other UA goal

The goal is to be refreshed and itching for distance running by the time 8 weeks is up.  (Who am I kidding, I’m already itching for my long runs!)

I vlogged about my goals for the UA challenge here. More on the Blend retreat soon.

Do you build seasons of rest into your training? Have you ever learned the hard way?

I’ll be heading home later today- of course, the retreat went way too quickly, but it has been a fantastic time to relax, eat, workout together and hang out with blogging buddie

I’m transitioning into more cross training and a running-for-fun phase right now, before marathon training starts.  I’ll go into more [...]]]>

Hello from BLEND!

I’ll be heading home later today- of course, the retreat went way too quickly, but it has been a fantastic time to relax, eat, workout together and hang out with blogging buddie

I’m transitioning into more cross training and a running-for-fun phase right now, before marathon training starts.  I’ll go into more details tomorrow.  So I didn’t do much running this week.  Here’s how it looked:

Sunday:  1 hour spin + headstand practice

Monday:  Jillian’s 30DS Level 2 + 6 mile easy run (3 with a coaching client)

Tuesday: Taught spin + Purely Twins core workout

Wednesday: Jillian’s NMTZ + 3 mile walk

Thursday: 1 hour spin + planks

Friday: Off/Travel day

Saturday: 10 mile run with BLEND friends (Lisa and Debra)

I’ve been learning a lot about myself as I go through some of the same tests I use with my health coaching clients (blood type tests, metabolic testing, aryuvedic types) and have been assured that I was not crazy when I thought I was craving meat this fall. All three of these tests and pinpointed me as a body type that can benefit from small amounts of meat.  So I will continue to add it in to our menu plan 2-3 times per week.

I am also putting together an abbreviated health coaching program to complete these tests with clients who want to get a better idea of what to eat, how to have less bloating, how to feel better or look better but don’t necessarily need a coach for the entire six month program.  More on that soon!

Sunday: Travel day- something on the road

Monday: Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs with sweet potatoes and greens

Tuesday:  Breakfast for dinner: Eggs and pancakes

Wednesday: Baked Quinoa Chicken Frittata

Thursday: Beet Pesto Pasta

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: Out or hubs cooks

Also- the winner of last week’s Sambazon giveaway is Maria H! Email me with your address, please!

What’s one fun thing you did this weekend?

You can search your photos by bib number and save them.  For the dozens of races I’ve done, I have never had [...]]]>

One of the benefits of an Esprit de She race is that race photos are free!! They use professional photographers, and race photos are posted to Facebook a few days after the event.

You can search your photos by bib number and save them.  For the dozens of races I’ve done, I have never had free race photos.  And I’ve (gasp) never paid for professional ones! I just can’t justify $25-40 for one picture when my hubs is willing and capable of catching some good pics.

So I downloaded all seven of mine.  There are one or two that I love! And one or two that are not the greatest, but they paint the true picture of what was going on.  And then a few that are just scary.

So I’m going to let you laugh along with me and share them.  It’s therapeutic to laugh at yourself, right?

The GOOD

This is how I envision myself looking on every run- strong and determined.

The BAD:

Getting tired- collapsing my hip. Terrible form!

Final push to the finish- scary face!!

The UGLY

Oh my.  I have no idea what my hands are doing here… and my face? Yikes!

I guess I was ready to be done!!

Have you purchased race photos? Do you have any “ugly” race day pics that you can now laugh about?

I cannot tell you how badly I need this… the break from routine, the gorgeous scenery, and of course, the incredible company.

Blend [...]]]>

I am so beyond excited right now.  In 24 hours, I’ll be boarding a plane to Utah, where I’ll meet up with some of my amazing blogging friends at the BLEND Retreat.

I cannot tell you how badly I need this… the break from routine, the gorgeous scenery, and of course, the incredible company.

Blend is set up to be more of a networking and relaxing retreat, as opposed to the structured sessions of other blogging conferences.  We’ll have delicious food, boot camp and hikes, and free time to explore Park City, Utah and the surrounding area.  Gah! Can’t wait.

I’m even more thrilled that Drink Chia is sponsoring me again for this conference.  They are an incredible company.  I am in awe of the strength and vision of Chandra, the founder, as she continues to grow and spread Drink Chia love around.  She is one impressive entrepreneur! And I’m proud to be listed as a friend of Drink Chia.

One of my childhood best friends sent me a text last week with a picture of Drink Chia in her local grocery store in Washington, DC.  If you’re in the Southeast, you can find them in Whole Foods and Wegmans.  I know it won’t be long before we’ll have them in Texas as well.  Keep an eye out!

Drink Chia is a lightly sweetened juice blend with, yep, chia in the bottle.  The seeds absorb the liquid to take on a soft, gummy texture similar to bubble tea (which I love!).  Each bottle only has 40 calories and is packed with the goodness of chia: omega 3s,b-complex vitamins and antioxidants.

They are especially good for athletes because of their hydration and endurance boosting properties.  Chia is considered a superfood because it has such high nutritious value in a small serving. Read this for more on the benefits of chia.

The drinks are available in Mango Tangerine, Strawberry Citrus, Lemon, and Honeysuckle Pear.

If you’ve never tried Drink Chia, come to Blend for some samples! But if that’s not possible, enter this giveaway for a sample pack and cross your fingers. You won’t be disappointed.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Also, the Athleta tee shirt winners are: Jenna H. and Karen O. Email me with your address, please!

Have you tried Drink Chia? Do you incorporate chia seeds into your diet?

I tend to get stuck in a rut, making my same favorite healthy smoothies over and over again.  So I asked some friends to share their recipes.  Check out all these delicious [...]]]>

Is it finally starting to feel like spring or summer where you are? We’re coming into the season where my body craves smoothies.

I tend to get stuck in a rut, making my same favorite healthy smoothies over and over again.  So I asked some friends to share their recipes.  Check out all these delicious ideas!!

HEALTHY SHAKES  (with protein powder and guar gum for thickening):

Carrot Cake Batter Shake

Oatmeal Cookie Shake

Cherry Ginger Smoothie

Peach Ice Cream Shake

Pumpkin Power Packed Smoothie

YOGURT BASED SMOOTHIES

Berry Superfoods Smoothie

Toasted Coconut and Pineapple Smoothie

Peach Cobbler Smoothie

Heavenly Berry Smoothie

Pumpkin Smoothie

Perky Pick Me Up Smoothie

GREEN SMOOTHIES

Iron Woman Smoothie

Peach Green Smoothie

Green Coconut Banana Smoothie

Green Smoothie with apple

Raisin Green Smoothie

 Get Well Green Smoothie

Orange Creamsicle Green Smoothie

Green Monster Smoothie

“I WANT PIE” SMOOTHIES

Key Lime Pie Protein Smoothie

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Peanut Butter Apple Pie Smoothie

Simple Apple Pie Smoothie

Key Lime Protein Smoothie (Greek yogurt)

JUST FRUIT SMOOTHIES

Pink Pear Smoothie

Rainbow Smoothie (plus spinach)

SCREAMING SUMMER SMOOTHIES

Pineapple Spinach Smoothie

Cherry Lemonade Smoothie

Fitness Fuel Raspberry Smoothie

Pretty in Pink Smoothie

Cacao Cherry Power Protein Smoothie

Black and Blue Protein Smoothie

INDULGE A LITTLE SMOOTHIES

Elvis Smoothie (Pb, banana and bacon)

Cookie Butter Smoothie

 Blueberry, Banana and Brown Sugar Smoothie

White Chocolate Designer Way Smoothie

For more round up posts, check these out:

4 Fresh Juices and 5 Healthy Smoothie Recipes from Ashley

Three healthy frozen drinks from Coco

Four Green Smoothie recipes from Michelle

 Recipe Adaptations: For the liquid, you can use any kind of milk (dairy, almond, rice, hemp) or replace it with coconut water, brewed tea or juice. Using plain or Greek yogurt will make a thicker smoothie. If you don’t use protein powder, leave it out and it won’t alter the recipe.  You can also omit guar gum in the “shakes”- it’s simply a thickening agent.

Do you have a favorite healthy smoothie?

If you have the opportunity to do an Esprit de She race or tri, you should! The evening included a 5k [...]]]>

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had the opportunity to be an ambassador for the Esprit de She Houston run, which happened to be last Thursday evening.

If you have the opportunity to do an Esprit de She race or tri, you should! The evening included a 5k and 10k race, shopping, champagne and a yoga class.

The worst part was getting there- Houston’s rush hour traffic is awful.  I left my house at 4:30, for what should have been a 20 minute drive.  Packet pick up closed at 5:45, and I found a parking spot at 5:30.  Talk about stress! I got a short jog in on my way to packet pick up and that was it for my warm up.  Maybe half a mile.

Thankfully, I made it in time to get my bib and bag of goodies and stashed them in one of the many sponsor tents. Love these tanks!

The race started at 6pm.  It was a muggy 80 degrees with a thunderstorm warning, so the humidity was high.  With those conditions, my goal was to enjoy the race and run based on how I felt.

We took off on time, and suddenly I was alone in the front.  I knew most women were running with friends, and for a rare moment, I got to feel what it was like to be the first one behind the bicycle!

Within the first mile, a girl came up from behind and passed me.  She stayed far enough ahead of me to keep me motivated to chase her for the rest of the race.

A few miles in, I realized a new pr was possible.  My 10ks have been far from my predicted times based on my 5k and half marathon, so given the right conditions, I knew I would soon break it.  But I didn’t expect this to be the night!

Miles 1-3: 6:51, 6:57, 6:50

The heat was definitely getting to me.  I hadn’t run all week since the 5k race, as I’ve been transitioning into a running break with more cross training (more on that soon).  So my legs were somewhat fresh but somewhat confused.  I had maintained my spinning, elliptical and weights and didn’t have any days off this week, so I felt better than I expected to.

The second half was tough.  It was a two loop course, which is mentally not so fun.  The only advantage was that we started passing the back of the pack 5k runners, so it gave me a nice distraction to focus on passing people.

The other 10k girl that I was chasing began to slow down in the last mile.  I wasn’t exactly moving quickly, but I was consistent enough to pass her.  Miles 4-6: 6:59, 6:58, 6:53…and final .2 6:42 pace

Final time: 42:47 (new pr)

Good enough for first place! I even got to break the ribbon.

They had great food afterwards- hot food from My Fit Foods (these are all over Houston), yogurt, fresh fruit, pretzels and a “bubbly bar” with access from a bib ticket.

The stage even had live music.

Afterwards, I got to meet up with some other local bloggers.

Way too sweaty to touch each other!

I’ve been lucky to meet up with Landi at several races.  She’s so sweet! I’m going to miss seeing her when we move.

I hung around for the awards, and chatted with some friendly triathletes who agreed to take a few pictures for me.

They also invited me to train with them for tris… I have to admit, I’m tempted.

Inside the prize bag: an Athleta tee, headphones, a sweatband and a magazine subscription to Experience Life.

The whole event was well organized, had a lot of “extras” for a small race, and they even share race photos for free! I haven’t seen mine yet, but I’m excited to check them out.

Have you ever run an evening race? Have you surprised yourself with a pr on what was supposed to be a fun run?

I hope those of you who are moms enjoy your special day.  My husband sent me out shoe shopping solo this week as my mother’s day gift for a much needed pair of sandals.  I don’t go shopping often these days, and it’s even more rare to shop alone, so I thoroughly [...]]]>

Happy Mother’s Day!!

I hope those of you who are moms enjoy your special day.  My husband sent me out shoe shopping solo this week as my mother’s day gift for a much needed pair of sandals.  I don’t go shopping often these days, and it’s even more rare to shop alone, so I thoroughly enjoyed my treat!

We’re also wrapping up the sugar detox today… how was it? Did you make it the whole way through? Did you learn anything about yourself and why you choose what you eat and when?

I was so strong until I had some baking to do last night for an event today, and I caved and had some brownie batter and chocolate chips.  It was yummy in the moment, but within an hour or two I felt awful- with an unhappy tummy, headache and a serious sugar crash.  Such a contrast to how good I was feeling all week.  I’ve never felt the effect of sugar so strongly!

Here are the prizes and winners from this round.  First is another box from Nature Box (love them!!) customized with no-sugar or low-sugar options.  Winner:  Suzanne P.

Lock Laces offered to give three pairs of laces.  I first used these for my triathlon last summer, and loved the ease of slipping on my sneakers for the run without untying and re-tying shoes.  It never occurred to me to use them for every day running as well, but why not? They are so much more convenient! 

Winners: Celeste J, Emily N, and Christine Y

And Sambazon offered a giveaway in honor of their two new superfood smoothies:

Chocolate + Almond + Coconut Milk is a deliciously creamy smoothie with eight grams of vegan whole-food protein per serving, plus healthy omegas.

 Supergreens is a fusion of vitality-boosting kale and ginger, providing two full servings of fruits and vegetables, and more than 120 açaí berries in each bottle.

They sent me vouchers to try some, and we found Supergreens and Acai Berry +Vanilla Proten at our Whole Foods store.  They were really good!

This girl LOVES smoothies!

Acai Vanilla Protein does have some added sugar, but was delicious.  Supergreens was sweetened with a variety of fruit juices and also had a hint of ginger in it, which I loved.  I want to try the Chocolate + Almond +Coconut Milk, so I’m going to look for it next time.

They also sent me this beautiful bowl…. I love love love wooden bowls.

Sambazon is giving away this bowl and smoothie vouches to one lucky winner.

To enter, check out the Sambazon products and tell me which one you’d like to try.

Bonus entry: Follow Sambazon on Twitter and leave a comment telling me you did.

Bonus entry: Tweet about the giveaway and tell me you did.  Sample tweet: Have you tried Sambazon smoothies? Win vouchers and a wooden bowl from @Sambazon and @mommyrunfaster http://wp.me/p2fC61-1zu

Ironically, Jill is giving away Sambazon goodies today too, so for double the chances, go enter hers as well!

For our usual Sunday menu planning link up, here’s our plan:

Sunday: Picnic in the park- avocado tuna salad, veggies, cheese, watermelon

Monday: Kelp Noodle and Veggie Stir Fry

Tuesday: Lemon Ginger Salmon with quinoa and sauteed greens

Wednesday: Black bean and Quinoa salad with lemon basil dressing

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday:  BLEND retreat- yay!!!

Saturday: BLEND retreat

And this looks like a yummy post sugar-detox treat… Ari came up with a Nutella flavored granola, yum!!

How do you celebrate Mother’s Day?

Have a great weekend, everyone!