Relaunch!!!!

Hello everyone, you may have known this blog as RunningformemyselfandI but its time for a change! Fitness is not just running, there is so much more out there to try! Running was my workout of choice for a while but I have moved on and there is nothing wrong with that! I'm starting a new journey, a journey of health and weight loss and I want to share it with you all. I have three goals right now in relation to health and fitness:

1.) Workout a minimum of 3 days a week but do some form of exercise everyday even if its just push-ups or planks, etc.
2.) Speaking of push-ups, by December 31, 2017, I will be able to do 25 regular push-ups in a row!!!
3.) Take all my vitamins every single day!

I've been working on these all month and so far I have been very successful! I've been sure to track any exercise I have been doing in a planner!

I am happy to say I have completed 3-4 workouts each week in every week of January and I have only had 2 days where I did not exercise my body in some way! That is a huge accomplishment for me! I am currently at 8 push-ups which is sadly more than I have been able to do in a long time!

My vitamins have really become a regular part of my routine as well. Currently I have three vitamins that I have been taking every night along with any others I may feel I need that day. All three of these are plant based and very high quality. Before anyone asks, no, there is no plan for a baby anytime soon but my Dr still recommended a woman my age take a prenatal. This particular one is fantastic! It has probiotics, kelp for my thyroid support and iron for my anemia on top of everything else that I need.  I started taking the B complex when I became a vegetarian. Finally, Vitamin D has been part of my routine since I have dealt with and still struggle with a severe deficiency for the last couple years.

Hopefully that catches you up a little bit but don't worry I have lots more to share with you as I go on this journey! Lots of things I am doing, what I am considering and who is helping me along the way! But for now, its just FitnessformemyselfandI!

Plank Challenge and Weekly Update

     Plank and challenge... two words that most people would cringe at. A plank is a challenge itself but when you say you are doing a plank challenge, you know you are serious. That is this months Pinterest fitness challenge for my fitness buddy and I. 

Here is a link to the pin. 

     
     We are ten days in and we both can see a difference. The first couple days you hold a plank for 20 seconds. You think "I can do that, 20 seconds isn't that bad" and then you begin. A few seconds in you start the shaking. But let me tell you you stick with this schedule for a few days and you will be shocked at how fast you can increase the length of your plank!
    
       Yesterday my girlfriend and I got together for a girls day and decided that we would do a 10 minute Pilates workout together and then yesterday was our first day of a one minute plank! The Pilates workout was great, we both love Pilates but haven't done it for a while. And then we did our plank- note to self: plank before a Pilates workout not after! We both were shaking soooo bad! But we made it! 9 days and you can be planking for a minute and by the end of the month you will be planking for a whole 5 minutes!!! Awesome!
     
     As for cardio, this week I actually haven't done any. I think I'm trying to change to many things at once. I found a plan that I started doing to work up to running 30 minutes in 4 weeks. Here is the link to the running plan. It's kinda kicking my butt. I can't believe how out of shape I am after not working out for a few months. Consistency is definitely the key to exercise. Next week I am going to try and start it again and stick with it. Even if  you fail to reach your goals, you just have to pick up where you left off and keep trying. So don't give up, I know I'm going to keep running for me, myself and I!

New Year

      A new year, a new start to my blog? Perhaps. Sometimes life gets too crazy but then you have to step back and realize that some things need to take more priority than they have in the future. That's what I feel like is happening for me. Life has been ridiculously busy and lots of things have gotten pushed aside. But the last few weeks I have had a break from work and have been able to get caught up on some things, have some time to relax and have some time to refocus.   

     One of my awesome friends and I were talking about a week ago and we both decided that we needed to make some changes and make our health a priority again. So we decided that we were going to be each other's fitness buddies, someone to keep each other motivated and on track. Here we are a week in and things are going pretty well! What are our goals?

1.) Drink more water. My specific goal is half my body weight in ounces.
2.) Take our vitamins daily. I'm taking everything from a multivitamin to a probiotic to fish oil. 
     Maybe another post about vitamins in the future.
3.) Exercise daily. For me, this is getting back to running (finally!) and strength training as well.
     I'll try to post more this week about my exercise goals this month. We're trying a fun challenge    
     that we found on Pinterest that lasts a month too! 

What about you? Do you have some fitness goals you are working on? Share them with me and keep an eye out as I try to be more active on this blog as well. No matter what we have going on in our lives, we should always have goals we are working toward. So now let's get to it, I'm back to running for me, myself and I!

I'm back!

Wow... Two whole months since my last post... That's pretty sad. Lots of stuff been going on including an injury that caused me to stop training. I'm not going to go into detail right now but tomorrow I will write a post to fill you in. I just wanted to write a quick post to let you know that I am back and plan on having regular posts again. Today was my first run in 6 weeks and it was pain free! It was only a mile but it was pain free! I'm so happy to get back to running, I have missed it sooo much! So get ready to join me again, because I will be running and I will be doing it for me, myself and I.

July's Plank and Squat Challenges!

     So here is the schedule for the two challenges I am doing this month. I tweaked them to make them increase a little more steadily and to make them a little more challenging. So go ahead, start this with me. Today is day one of the challenge! Can you do it? Leave your comments below and share with me how you are doing. I will include these two challenges in my daily update and I can't wait to see how you do as well!

WEEK	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
1	:10 sec plank 50 squats	:15 sec plank 60 squats	:20 sec plank 70 squats	:25 sec plank Rest from squats	:30 sec plank 80  squats	:35 sec plank 90    squats	:40 sec plank 100 squats
2	:45 sec plank Rest from squats	:45 sec plank 110 squats	:50 sec plank 120    squats	:50 sec plank 130  squats	:60 sec plank Rest from squats	:60 sec plank 140  squats	:60 sec plank 150 squats
3	:65 sec plank 160 squats	:65 sec plank Rest from squats	:70 sec plank 170 squats	:70 sec plank 180  squats	:75 sec plank 190 squats	:75 sec plank Rest from squats	:80 sec plank 200 squats
4	:80 sec plank 210 squats	:85 sec plank 220 squats	:85 sec plank Rest from squats	:90 sec plank 230 squats	:90 sec plank 240 squats	:90 sec plank 250 squats	:90 sec plank Rest from squats

Monday Madness: Dragging Along

     Today was definitely one of those Mondays. It was a long weekend and I was not ready for the week to start. I didn't get to run before work and I think that was definitely part of my problem. Mix that with a lack of sleep and not eating well on Sunday since we were gone and not taking my vitamins this weekend and you have a bad start to the week. It's all my fault, I know. But that's enough of me whining cause that could go on for a while if I let it.
     So after work, I was determined to get my first run in after the race, the run that would start the training for my 10K. Let's just say, I wasn't feeling it. I decided to try a new course today to try to get myself out of the funk. I did it, I covered the distance but I took it pretty easy, I ended up walking more than normal. It took me almost 40 minutes to do the 3 miles. My mind just wasn't in it and my body wasn't feeling very powerful. This has been the first day since I started running that I didn't really enjoy it but at the same time I am glad that I got out there and did it for myself. Because after all, I am running for me, myself and I. Do you have any tips for getting yourself out of that funk and getting into the groove for your run?
     Today I also added a couple new things to my training. Tomorrow I really start my strength training but since it is the first of July I thought that I would do a couple month long challenges. I am doing a plank challenge as well as a squat challenge. I will post that schedule as soon as I put them together in a chart so you can do it along with me. 
     I also started something totally random. On Pinterest, I had found a pin that was about learning to do the splits in 2 weeks and so I decided that I would try it. We will see if I can actually do them in 2 weeks or not but either way it is a great stretching routine that I thought would benefit my legs for running. 
     I really should go take all of my vitamins now, that's a whole different story but I am thinking that I may benefit from adding iron soon. I will talk about that soon as well as a couple other vitamins I added when I started running. So until next, get out there and show the world what you've got! I'll be running... for me, myself and I! 

Fantastic Friday

     To any of who were waiting anxiously for a post yesterday about the 5K, I'm sorry I didn't get one done yesterday. I just really enjoyed the day! It was fantastic! Party in Pink in Vinton rocked!
     I worked until 1 yesterday and then headed home and decided to go for a short jog. I was kind of nervous and could tell I was getting anxious. It was about 81 and very windy and I wasn't sure how I was going to do. My muscles were kind of tight for some reason and I wanted to get them warmed up a little. So like I said, I went for a slow jog of 3/4 mile in 10 minutes. Then at 3:00 I went for an even shorter jog of a 1/3 of a mile. Then I got in the shower and got my race clothes on! I think that was when it finally hit me that I was running my first 5K!
     I hadn't registered yet. I know, I know, they always say that you should sign up well in advance as a motivation to run the race. But I didn't. I definitely will for the 10K though! So since I hadn't registered yet I wanted to get there a little after 4:30 when they were starting day-of registration. I drove to the the registration area, found a parking spot, got out of the car and immediately had a few feelings of "What am I doing here?" But I knew I could do it so I put those feelings aside and registered! I was number 453! 

                    

   

The original goal for this race was 200 people, they had 300 people registered by the end of the pre-registration a month before the race. As it turns out, there were over 600 walkers and runners when it was all said and done! Awesome!I can't wait to see how many people there are next year, I know I'll be there!
     So, it was now an hour or so until the race. I walked around a little bit, pinned my number on and waited for my husband to get there after work. My husband came with some water for me, my soon to be sister-in-law came for support and then some friends got there that were running the race too. My brother-in-law and sister in law (she is running her first marathon this fall a.k.a huge inspiration to me) drove by and told me they were acting as support for the race which was awesome because I knew I would have someone rooting for me along the way.
     Well, it was finally about time for the race to start. I did just a little jog to get warmed up and then they had some announcements and stuff which were really hard to hear, they didn't quite have the speaker system that they needed since they weren't expecting such a big crowd. And then, ready or not it was time to line up! They had a separate section for walkers and runners. I had decided that I was going to go to the very back of the runners. I did that so that I wouldn't have a bunch of people passing me and I could go at the pace that I wanted. It felt good just to be with the runners.
     At 6:05 the starter gun was shot and we were off! The adrenaline was kicking in and I was ready to just go! I was actually completely shocked at how many people I passed at the beginning! I'm guessing I could have gone about half way up in the runners but at the same time it made me stay slow as I was weaving through people and it gave me a little boost to know that I was faster than some of the runners. I was very proud of myself that I went 1.2 miles before I took a walk break, in fact, that made me feel really good!
     Then we came to the first hydration station. That was an experience. I probably should have just skipped them both but I figured water couldn't hurt. So I thought I knew what I was doing. Grab the cup, pinch the top and sip. Right? Wrong! First sip I totally chocked! LOL!Oh well! That's what memories are made of right? I think after this I will slow to a slow walk, just drink it and then get going. Live and learn right?
     It really is true when they say that you will find other runners that are running at your pace. There were several people that I went back and forth in position with. But it felt good to know that I was keeping a steady pace. In the beginning of the race everyone is cramped together but I would say between a mile and a mile and a half it had definitely thinned out. It was nice to have more space to be able to focus on your breathing and pace instead of other people around you.
     Then with I would say about 3/4 of a mile left, I saw a red PT cruiser which only meant one thing! My brother-in-law and sister-in-law! She was holding a sign to keep the runners motivated. I saw them and started waving and she got all excited and reached for something in the car. It was a big orange sign that said "GREAT JOB LEEANN!!! ALMOST DONE" That was exactly what I needed! It seriously almost made me cry! It meant a lot to have that support from them. At that point I was starting to slow down too but it gave me just the boost I needed to keep going! Thank you!!!
     Then I was finally to the last hill, getting so close to the finish line and the worst thing happened!!! Just kidding! It was great! I got to the top of the hill and heard one of my friends who had run (he was 21st overall) yell at me, "It's all downhill from here!" That was all I needed to hear and I made a mad dash for the finish line! I have no idea where all of that energy came from!

                                      

     
     I was kind of a special moment for me crossing the finish line too because to the left walkers were to cross but to the right runners crossed the line. I think that was the moment that I finally realized, I AM A RUNNER!!!

                                 

    

     I finished 151st out of over 600! Top 25 percent! Oh yeah!!! And guess what? 33 minutes!!! Personal record beat by 2 minutes! I could tell that I was running faster through this race but I wasn't going to look at my time, I just wanted to run my race! Why? Because I was running for me, myself and I!
     So what is my overall thoughts of a 5K? Awesome! Amazing! Fantastic! If you haven't done one before, I would strongly recommend it! It truly is an amazing feeling that you don't get just running on your own. 
     I really can't wait for my next race! I am actually thinking about doing one on Thursday in Dysart but I haven't decided yet. From the times last year, if I did it I could actually place in my age category  That's why I am leaning towards doing it but we shall see. I'll let you know when I figure it out.
     So to all you out there, keep going, you can do it! But as for me, I am running for me, myself and I!